IvIBRARY 

OF  TUB 


University  of  California. 


GIF^T   OF^ 


Mrs.  SARAH  P.  WALSWORTH, 

Received  October,  i8g4. 
iy^ccessions  No„5^Si%  .-      Class  No. 


MEMORIALS 


OP 


BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 


WITH  A  PRELIMI^^AI1Y  HISTORICAL  ESSAY, 

BY    J.    NEWTON   BROWN. 


The  Beheading  Block. 


OF  THa 


PHILADELPHIA: 
AMERICAN   BAPTIST    PUBLICATION    SOCIETY, 

118    ARCTT    STREET. 


K-'n  ip  I    I  ^ 


FAf 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1854,  by  the 

AMERICAN   BAPTIST   PUBLICATION   SOCIETY, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States,  in 
and  for  the  Eastern  District  of  Pennsylvania. 


PHILADELPHIA: 
BTEREOTTPED  BY  OEORQE  CHARLES, 
PRINTED  BY  KING  &  BAIRD. 


PRELIMINAM  HISTORICAL  ESSAY. 


BY   J.    NEWTON   BROWN. 

A  Martyr  is  a  witness — a  witness  for  God,  for  Truth 
and  Righteousness — a  witness  tried  both  by  action  and 
by  suffering,  and  found  faithful  to  his  conscience  and  to 
Christ,  through  every  trial.  Such,  at  least,  are  those  who, 
by  the  grace  of  God,  are  entitled  to  the  name  of  Chris- 
tian martyrs.  *'To  you  it  is  given, ^^  sa^js  Paul  to  the 
Philippians,  *'  in  the  behalf  of  Christ,  not  only  to  believe 
on  him,  but  also  to  suffer  for  his  sake." 

By  usage,  however,  this  title,  which  belongs  to  faithful 
Christians  in  general,  has  come  in  modern  times  to  be  re- 
stricted to  those  who  suffer  tcnto  death.  Hence,  in  our 
English  Bible,  the  only  three  examples  where  the  term 
occurs  are  of  this  kind  : — Stephen  of  Jerusalem,  Antipas 
of  Pergamos,  and  the  prophetic  roll  of  the  ^'martyrs  of 
Jesus,"  with  whose  blood  the  mystic  ^'Babylon"  is 
drunken.  Acts  22  :  20.  Rev.  2 :  13.  11  :  6. 

Martyrdom,  in  this  restricted  sense,  may  be  said  to 
have  begun  with  the  first  generation  of  fallen  man.  Then 
in  the  world's  fresh  morning,  the  blood  of  righteous 
Abel,  shed  by  a  brother's  hand,  cried  unto  God  from  the 
crimsoned  earth.  The  first  revealed  ^'  heir  of  the  righteous- 
ness which  is  by  faith,"  was  thus  a  martyr — a  Christian 
martyr  —  typically,  but  truly  —  like  John  the  Baptist  in 
later  time,  bearing  witness  unto  death  to  *'  the  Lamb  of 
God, who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world." 

(3) 


4  PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

But  it  is  manifest  that  the  testimony  of  the  true  martyr 
must  vary  in  degree,  though  not  in  kind,  with  the  measure 
of  Divine  Revelation  in  different  ages,  and  under  different 
dispensations.  Hence,  the  martyr  from  the  time  of  Noah 
to  Abraham  might  die  as  a  witness  to  the  new  truth  re- 
vealed to  Noah  ;  and  from  Abraham  to  Moses  for  the  new 
revelation  to  Abraham ;  and  from  Moses  to  Christ  for  the 
new  revelation  to  Moses,  or  to  any  one  of  the  successive  pro- 
phets, by  whose  anointed  lips,  ''  God,  in  time  past  spake 
unto  the  fathers."  The  martyrs  down  to  the  time  of  the 
Maccabees,  are  examples  cited  by  Paul.  Heb.  11  :  85-38. 

On  the  same  principle,  it  is  equally  clear  that,  after  the 
coming  of  Christ,  every  faithful  martyr  was  liable  to  suffer 
for  the  new  revelations  and  institutions  introduced  hy 
Him  ;  whether  in  person,  or  through  his  Apostles,  by  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  (John  15 :  18-27.  16  :  1-4.  12 
-15.)  Of  this,  Christians,  from  the  beginning,  were  fully 
forewarned,  and  especially  Christian  ministers,  (Matt.  5  : 
10-12.  10  :  16-42.  16  :  21-28.)  and  appropriate  cautions, 
counsels,  and  consolations  were  provided  for  their  guid- 
ance and  support. 

It  behooves  us,  therefore,  to  examine  carefully  what  those 
new  revelations  and  institutions  are,  belonging  especially 
to  the  New  Testament  dispensation,  and  binding  upon 
the  conscience  of  every  disciple  of  Christ,  '^  even  unto  the 
end  of  the  world. '^  For  it  is  not  every  sufferer  that  is  a 
martyr — though  he  may  he  a  Christian  ;  for  it  is  possible 
that  even  a  Christian  may  suffer  for  his  own  faults,  and 
not  for  righteousness'  sake,  or  for  Christ's  sake.  (1  Peter 
4  :  15-16.)  A  single  fault  in  the  temper  and  tongue  of 
the  meekest  of  men,  shut  him  out  of  Canaan.  Moses,  the 
noblest  witness  for  God  in  his  time,  yet  died  for  his  own 
fault  —  a  warning  to  every  succeeding  generation  of 
God's  witnesses.     Still  more  striking  is  the  case  of  the 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL    ESSAY.  5 

young  prophet  at  Bethel ;  who  died  for  disobeying  the 
plain  command  of  God,  through  what  might  be  thought 
a  becoming  deference  to  the  authority  of  a  ''father"  in 
Israel — a  warning  too  little  heeded  by  those  who  fol- 
lowed ''the  traditions  of  the  elders"  in  after  times, 
and  the  authority  of  "  the  early  fathers  "  in  the  Christian 
Church.  (1  Kings  13  :  20-24.)  In  like  manner,  Paul  in 
reproving  the  Corinthians  for  their  abuse  of  the  Lord's 
supper,  says,  "  For  this  cause  many  are  weak  and  sickly 
among  you,  and  many  sleep."  (1  Cor.  11  :  30). 

'Nov  is  it  every  one  that  suffers  in  a  true  and  righteous 
cause,  though  he  may  die  with  indomitable  courage,  that 
wins  the  crown  of  martyrdom;  for  "though  I  give  my 
body  to  be  burned,"  says  the  Apostle,  "and  have  not 
charity,  (^.e.,love),  it  profiteth  me  nothing."  Thousands 
also  have  been  slaughtered  for  their  connection  with 
Christianity,  like  the  infants  of  Bethlehem,  who  were 
rather  victims  to  cruelty  than  martyrs  for  Truth. 

Much  less,  even  in  the  judgment  of  charity,  are 
they  to  be  justly  regarded  as  Christian  martyrs,  who  die 
in  the  diffusion  and  defence  of  antichristian  errors.  We 
grant  that  this  distinction  may  be,  and  has  been  sadly 
abused  for  many  hundreds  of  years,  by  many  pretentious 
parties  in  Christendom  ;  still  within  proper  limits,  and 
with  due  allowance  for  all  Christian  freedom  of  thought, 
it  is  a  sound  one,  and  must  not  be  ignored.  The  oppo- 
site opinion — however  disguised  under  the  name  of  liber- 
ality—  involves  absolute  contradiction.  Though  often 
grievously  misapplied,  therefore,  the  old  maxim  is  essen- 
tially true,  "There  are  no  martyrs  out  of  the  Church." 
But  then  the  Church  is  no  narrow  sectarian  organization, 
no  self-assumed  infallible  patron  of  orthodoxy,  no  State 
Establishment,  whether  episcopal,  presbyterial,  or  con- 
gregational ;  but  the  universal  body  of  evangelical  believers 


6  PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

of  every  age  —  the  body  which  recognizes  and  adores 
Jesus  Christ  as  ''  God  manifested  in  the  flesh,"  ''  the  pro- 
pitiation for  our  sins,"  and  the  unchanging  ''  head  of  all 
principality  and  power." 

It  may  be  well  to  state  explicitly  what  we  conceive 
to  be  the  essential  and  invariable  elements  of  true  Evan- 
gelical Christianity.  There  may  be  others,  but  the 
four  following  we  regard  as  both  fundamental  and  vital. 
The  Scriptures  only,  as  the  Supreme  Rule  of  Faith  ; 
Free  Justification  in  Christ  only  through  Faith  ; 
Spiritual  Regeneration  only,  as  the  origin  of  Faith; 
Personal  Sanctification  only,  manifested  by  good  works, 
as  the  Effect  and  Evidence  of  Faith.  These  proposi- 
tions are  logically  and  inseparably  linked  together, 
and  constitute  one  self-consistent  organic  system  of  re- 
vealed Truth.  This  system  is  ''the  Gospel  of  Christ." 
No  other  can  be  substituted  for  it.  It  bears  on  its  front 
the  stamp  and  seal  of  the  Almighty.  It  is  the  power  of 
God  unto  salvation  to  every  one  that  believeth.  And  of 
this  it  is  the  Apostle  says  to  the  Galatians,  "  If  we,  or  an 
angel  from  Heaven,  preach  unto  you  any  other  Gospel, 
let  him  be  accursed."  The  man  who  intelligently  and 
honestly  believes  this — lives  for  it,  and  dies  for  it — wher- 
ever found,  or  whatever  name  he  bears,  is  worthy  to  be 
esteemed  by  all  mankind,  as  he  is  by  Christ  himself,  a 
*'  faithful  martyr." 

But  we  go  farther.  The  above  formulas  of  fundamen- 
tal truth  do  not  exhaust  the  distinctive  principles  of  a 
Pure  Christianity.  There  are  others  that  belong  to  the 
institutions  of  Christ,  under  the  New  Testament  economy. 
Such,  for  example,  are  the  following.  Universal  Free- 
dom OF  Conscience  only  as  a  Condition  of  Faith  ;  Baptism 

ONLY  ON  A  conscientious  PROFESSION  OF  FaITH  J  ImMERSION 
ONLY,  AS  THE  PRESCRIBED  BaPTISM    OF  FaITH  J    BAPTIZED  Be- 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY.  7 

LIEVERS  ONLY,   AS  THE  PROPER  MATERIALS    OF  THE  CHRISTIAN" 

Church — the  living  Body  of  Christ. 

These  propositions — to  add  no  more — may  be  safely 
said  to  shine  on  the  face  of  the  New  Testament,  and  to 
inhere  in  the  very  substance  of  the  revealed  dispensation 
under  which  we  live.  They  are  all  organically  and  logi- 
cally connected  with  each  other,  and  are  essential  to  the 
normal  or  regular  visible  constitution  of  the  kingdom  of  God 
on  earth.  They  are  the  characteristic  features  of  that "  king- 
dom which  is  not  of  this  world ;"  in  distinction  from  all 
preceding  dispensations ;  and  in  contrast  with  all  subse- 
quent forms  of  religion,  founded  on  human  policy,  and 
supported  by  civil  power. 

Now  what  we  wish  to  be  remembered  is,  that  any  one 
who,  from  a  good  conscience  toward  God,  suffers  for  any 
one  of  these  '^  words  "  of  Christ,  suffers  as  a  Martyr.  He 
is  bound,  as  a  Christian,  ^*to  observe  all  things  whatso- 
ever "  commanded  by  Christ,  even  at  the  hazard  of  his  life, 
or  the  loss  of  it.  Unless  he  thus  take  up  the  cross  of  his 
crucified  Lord,  he  cannot  be  a  genuine  disciple.  ^'  He 
that  seeketh  to  save  his  life,  shall  lose  it ;  and  he  that 
loseth  his  life  for  my  sake,"  says  Christ,  ^' shall  keep  it 
unto  life  eternal."  And  'Tear  not  them  which  kill  the 
body,  but  are  not  able  to  kill  the  soul ;  but  fear  Him  who 
is  able  to  destroy  both  soul  and  body  in  hell."  Hence, 
our  Lord  himself — the  King  of  Martyrs — bore  testimony 
to  the  truth  before  the  Jewish  Sanhedrim,  although  he 
knew  that  his  death  would  be  the  penalty — a  death  of  pub- 
lic infamy,  and  of  unutterable  agony.  Hence,  animated 
by  His  Spirit,  Peter  and  John,  when  summoned  before  the 
same  council,  and  forbidden  to  preach  in  the-  name  of 
Christ,  made  their  noble  appeal — ''Whether  it  be  right 
in  the  sight  of  God,  to  hearken  unto  you  more  than  unto 
God,  judge  ye ;  for  we  cannot  but  speak  the  things  which 


8  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

we  have  seen  and  heard."  Hence,  the  intrepid  Stephen 
laid  down  his  life,  under  the  hands  of  violence — praying 
like  his  dying  Saviour,  *'  Lord,  lay  not  this  sin  to  their 
charge."  Hence,  John  the  Baptist,  for  his  faithful  re- 
monstrance against  sin,  and  James,  the  son  of  Zebedee, 
that  fearless  ^'  son  of  thunder,"  both  fell  under  the  bloody 
steel  of  Herod.  Thus  began,  with  names  never  to  be  for- 
gotten, the  long  bright  roll  of  New  Testament  Martyrs. 
And  thus,  from  year  to  year,  and  from  age  to  age,  that 
illustrious  roll  received  accessions,  from  the  violence  of 
Jewish  or  Heathen  persecutors,  for  three  centuries. 

But,  with  only  one  known  exception,  all  this  time,  these 
Christian  Martyrs  were  Baptists.  Neither  Christ,  nor  his 
Apostles  have  left  us  a  single  precept  or  example  of  Infant 
Baptism.  This  is  a  conceded  fact.  The  very  first  Pedo- 
baptists  in  history — Cyprian  of  Carthage  and  his  clergy, 
(a.  d.  253,)  did  not  plead  any  law  of  Christ,  or  Apostoli- 
cal tradition,  for  infant  baptism.  They  put  the  whole 
thing  upon  analogy  and  inference — upon  the  necessity  of 
infants  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  unlimited  grace  of  God 
on  the  other.  Their  own  language  is  an  implied  and  ab- 
solute confession  that  their  *'  opinion,"  as  they  call  it,  had 
no  basis  in  any  New  Testament  law  or  precedent.  It 
confesses,  in  a  word,  that  in  advocating  the  baptism  of 
literally  new-born  babes,  they  were  introducing  a7i  inno- 
vation  into  the  Church  of  Christ — and  they  defend  it  only 
on  the  ground  of  necessity. 

In  stating  this  historical  fact,  we  are  perfectly  aware  of 
the  views  of  Dr.  Wall,  in  favor  of  a  different  conclusion. 
And  we  are  perfectly  aware  of  the  special  pleadings  by 
which  he  has  darkened  the  clear  light  of  history  on  this 
point.  Honest,  but  prejudiced  to  the  last  degree,  he  has 
propagated  for  a  century  and  a  half  a  host  of  delusions 
among  his  confiding  followers.     He  has  started  wrong  at 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY.  9 

the  beginning ;  and  beguiled  his  own  strong  intellect  by 
the  most  unfounded  assumptions.  His  hereditary  idea  of 
a  State  Church  is  the  first  grand  error — perhaps  the  real 
root  of  all  the  rest.  Then  came  the  convenient  argument 
of  Jewish  Proselyte  Baptism  as  the  model  of  Christian 
Baptism — involving  a  whole  series  of  false  assumptions. 
Then,  the  language  of  Christ  and  his  Apostles  is  tortured, 
to  draw  from  it  meanings  it  never  can  have  by  any  fair  in- 
terpretation.* Then  the  language  of  the  early  Christian 
Fathers  must  be  put  upon  the  rack,  for  the  same  purpose. 
Could  Clement  of  Rome,  Hermas,  Justin  Martyr,  Irenaeus, 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  Tertullian,  or  Origen  himself,  rise 
from  the  tomb,  they  would  protest  with  solemn  indigna- 
tion at  the  force  that  has  been  put  upon  their  words,  and 
the  absolute  perversion  of  their  testimony. f  Then  follows 
Dr.  Wall's  ingenious  supposition  to  account  for  the  lan- 
guage of  Basil,  and  Cyril — his  grand  mistake  of  the  testi- 
mony of  Augustine  and  Pelagius — and  his  miserable  at- 
tempts to  set  aside  the  fact,  that  every  distinguished  Chris- 
tian writer  of  the  first  four  centuries,  whose  baptism  is  re* 
corded,  was  baptized  in  adult  years,  on  his  own  confession 
of  faith — a  fact  that  also  holds  true  of  every  Christian 
emperor  in  the  fourth  century,  from  Constantine  to 
Theodosius. 

The  infatuation  of  Dr.  Wall  is  sad  enough  ;  but  it  is 
outdone  by  a  writer  in  the  North  American  Review  for 
January,  1854 ;  who  has  the  weakness  to  afi&rm  in  the 

*  Even  the  great  Schleiermacher  says,  "  lie  that  will  find  infant  bap- 
tism in  the  New  Testament,  mtist  first  jx^f  it  there."  So,  in  effect,  say 
Neander,  Hahn,  Hagenbach,  Bunsen,  and  the  North  British  Review. 

f  The  reader  will  find  the  clearest  evidence  of  this  in  the  articles  of 
Dr.  Sears,  in  the  Christian  Review,  for  March  and  June,  1838;  and  still 
more  fully  in  those  of  Dr.  Chase,  in  the  Bibliotheca  Sacra,  for  November, 
1849,  and  in  the  Christian  Review,  for  April,  1854. 


10  PKELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY. 

face  of  the  world — in  a  lame  criticism  on  Bunsen's  Hip- 
polytus— that  the ^ evidence  for  infant  baptism  ''amounts 
to  historical  demonstration  /"  The  words  of  the  Apostle  to 
Timothy  seem  here  truly  applicable  :  ''  Now  as  Jannes  and 
Jambres  withstood  Moses,  so  do  these  also  resist  the 
truth.  But  they  shall  proceed  no  further ;  for  their  folly 
shall  be  manifest  unto  all  men,  as  theirs  also  was."  The 
accomplished  scholars  of  the  North  British  Review,  in 
several  recent  numbers,  have  frankly  confessed  the  want 
of  scriptural  and  early  authority  for  infant  baptism  ;  and 
have  intimated  that  even  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury 
himself,  appears  to  be  on  this  point  undergoing  a  process 
of  ^^  historical  conversion.''^^ 

But  there  is  one  decisive  evidence  that  the  primitive 
Martyrs  for  three  centuries  were  Baptists.  We  refer  to 
the  document  prepared  by  Eusebius  of  Csesarea,  the  eccle- 
siastical historian,  for  the  signature  of  all  the  bishops  of 
the  General  Council  of  Nice,  (A.  D.  325).  It  is  found 
in  his  own  report  of  the  proceedings,  addressed  to  his 
flock  at  Caesarea,  as  given  by  Socrates  and  Theodoret. 
We  subjoin  it  in  Dr.  Cave's  translation. 

'^  The  form  proposed  by  us,  and  which  was  read  in  the  presence  of  the 
most  sacred  emperor,  and  seemed  to  be  liked  and  approved  by  all,  was 
in  this  manner : — The  exposition  of  our  faith,  as  we  have  received  it 
from  the  bishops,  who  were  our  predecessors,  both  when  we  were  first  in- 
structed in  the  rudiments  of  the  faith,  and  when  afterwards  baptized  into 
it;  as  we  have  learned  from  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  both  believed  and 
taught,  not  only  when  we  sustained  the  ofl&ce  of  presbyter,  but  since  we 
came  to  the  episcopal  station,  so  do  we  still  believe,  and  produce  this 
as  the  account  of  our  faith  :  We  believe  in  one  God,^*  <fec.f 

Here  is  a  testimony  from  the  '^  Father  of  Ecclesiastical 
History,"  produced  on  the  most  public  occasion,  in  the  pre- 

*  North  British  Review  for  August,  1852. 

t  Cave's  Lives  of  the  Fathers,  Vol.  II.  p.  112,  Oxford,  1840. 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY.  11 

sence  of  318  bishops  of  the  Catholic  Church,  besides  near 
2000  other  delegates,  presbyters  and  laymen,  convened 
from  all  parts  of  the  world — in  the  most  solemn  form  and 
for  the  most  solemn  purpose  conceivable — that  according 
to  Christ's  Commission,  instruction  in  the  principles  of  ■ 
Christianity  J  in  all  cases  preceded  baptism. 

We  have  said  that  there  was  one  exception.  Cyprian 
of  Carthage,  the  father  of  pedobaptism,  was  a  man  of  God 
and  a  martyr.  But  we  affirm,  without  fear  of  contradic- 
tion, and  invite  correction  if  we  are  wrong,  that  he  is  the 
only  one  recorded  in  the  first  three  centuries.  Indeed,  that 
the  "  opinion'^  of  this  distinguished  man  in  favor  of  the 
baptism  of  babes  before  the  eighth  day  from  their  birth, 
refers  only  to  cases  of  immediate  danger  of  death,  is  clear, 
not  only  from  his  own  words,  but  also  from  the  fact  that 
Eusebius  does  not  even  deem  the  opinion  worthy  of  men- 
tion in  his  Ecclesiastical  History.  And,  as  we  have  seen, 
the  custom  was  unknown  seventy-two  years  afterwards,  at 
the  Council  of  Nice.  Yet  how  often  is  this  ''  opinion"  of 
Cyprian  quoted  now,  as  if  it  were  evidence  of  the  uni^ 
versal  prevalence  of  pedobaptism  in  the  first  ages  I 

As  now,  it  appears  that  pedobaptism  had  *'no  recog- 
nized existence,"  even  in  the  so-called  Catholic  Church, 
until  after  the  Council  of  Nice,  (nor  indeed  until  the  time 
of  Gregory  Nazianzen,  a.  d.  363,)  so  we  have  no  proof 
whatever  that  it  ever  existed  in  the  Pure  Churches,  or 
Gathari,  who  separated  from  the  Catholics  in  the  preced- 
ing century,  in  the  time  of  Novatian,  a.  d.  251.  This 
large  body  of  Dissenters  from  the  Catholic  communion, 
were  called  Novatians  by  their  adversaries ;  but  as  the 
historian  Socrates  testifies,  they  called  themselves  in  Greek, 
Gathari,  (in  Latin,  Puritani,)  signifying  the  pure  ;  and  the 
name  was  designed  by  them  to  announce  the  fundamental 
principle  of  their  separation,  which  was  the  preservation 


12  PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

of  a  pure  church  membership,  communion,  and  discipline. 
They  held  that  the  Catholics  had  so  departed  from  the 
original  constitution  of  the  Church  in  this  respect,  as  to 
have  forfeited  their  claim  to  that  honor ;  and  hence  invaria- 
bly baptized  all  who  joined  them  from  the  Catholic 
churches.  Hence  they  are  the  first  in  history  who  were 
called  Anabaptists  J  that  is,  rehaptizers ;  although,  of 
course,  they  denied  the  propriety  of  the  appellation,  as 
they  believed  the  baptism  administered  by  a  corrupt 
church  to  be  null  and  void.* 

Much  stress  has  been  laid  on  the  fact,  that  no  catalogue 
of  heresies  from  Irenaeus  to  Epiphanius,  (a.  d.  180,  to 
A.  D.  380,)  enumerates  any  sect  as  deniers  of  infant  bap- 
tism. The  facts  already  established  furnish  the  answer : 
there  was  then  no  such  Catholic  custom  as  infant  baptism 
to  be  denied.  Tertullian  (a.  d.  200),  did  oppose  the  in- 
novation of  Quintillaj  who  would  have  given  baptism  to 
children  too  young  to  give  proper  evidence  of  piety  ;  and 
his  voice  was  not,  what  it  has  been  strangely  misrepre- 
sented to  be,  even  by  Dr.  Schaff,  *'  a  solitary  voice,  with- 
out an  echo  ;"  it  was  the  voice  of  the  then  Catholic  church, 


*  Dr.  "VYall  says,  they  did  not  complain  of  the  Catholics  for  infant 
baptism :  but,  as  we  have  seen,  for  a  very  good  reason,  namely,  that  it 
did  not  come  into  common  use  for  ages  after,  among  the  Catholics 
themselves.  Neither  do  the  Donatists — who  seceded  from  the  Catholics 
about  sixty  years  after  the  Novatians,  and  for  very  similar  reasons — 
make  any  such  complaint  ,•  although  they  chiefly  resided  in  North  Africa, 
where  Cyprian  lived  and  died,  and  might  be  supposed  to  sympathize 
with  him  in  opinion  and  practice.  Dr.  Wall  takes  this  for  proof  that 
they  were  all  Pedobaptists — a  consequence  of  his  own  previous  assump- 
tions. All  the  positive  evidence  he  adduces,  is  the  canon  of  a  Council 
which  belongs  to  t\iQ  fifth  century ;  when  some  of  them  may  be  supposed 
to  have  fallen  in  with  the  prevailing  practice  of  the  State  Church, 
though  contrary  to  the  distinctive  spirit  and  tendency  of  their  own 
secession. 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY.  13 

against  which  none  replied."^  How  could  they  indeed, 
when  the  catechumenical  course  was  universally  estab- 
lished, as  necessary  before  baptism  ? 

It  is  time  that  men  of  learning  and  candor  abandoned 
all  such  unhistorical  positions,  and  inconsequential  rea- 
sonings. Infant  baptism  is  an  error  from  beginning  to 
end ;  corrupt  in  theory,  and  corrupting  in  practice  ;  born 
in  superstition,  cradled  in  fear,  nursed  in  ignorance,  sup- 
ported by  fraud,  and  spread  by  force ;  doomed  to  die  in 
the  light  of  historical  investigation,  and  its  very  memory 
to  be  loathed  in  all  future  ages  by  a  disabused  Church  f 
In  the  realms  of  despotism  it  has  shed  the  blood  of  mar- 
tyrs in  torrents ;  that  blood  cries  against  it  to  heaven ; 
and  a  long-suffering  God  will  yet  be  the  terrible  avenger. 
The  book  before  us  is  a  swift  witness  against  it. 

Down  to  the  time  of  Constantine,  with  the  solitary  ex- 
ception of  Cyprian,  as  we  have  shown,  all  the  martyrs — 
and  their  number  has  been  computed  at  three  millions — ■ 
were  Baptists  ;  though  with  various  shades  of  error  gradu- 
ally gathering  over  them  from  the  beginning  of  the  third 
century  —  perhaps  earlier.  Already  the  corruption  in 
Kome,  and  Carthage,  had  become  so  great  —  not  in 
the  ordinances  J  so  much  as  in   the  membership  —  as  to 

*  This  whole  subject  of  infant  baptism,  and  the  true  theory  of  the 
sacraments,  in  Dr.  Schaff's  otherwise  admirable  History,  needs,  and 
will,  wo  trust,  yet  receive  from  its  esteemed  author,  a  thorough  re- 
vision. 

f  In  no  boastful  spirit,  but  in  the  spirit  of  a  martyr  before  God — 
stung  by  the  solemn  conviction  of  duty,  after  thirty-five  years  of  earnest 
and  impartial  investigation  on  this  subject^ — to  speak  out  "the  truth, 
the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the  truth'" — we  nail  these  Theses  to 
the  door  of  every  Pedobaptist  Church  in  Christendom  ,•  and  challenge 
all  the  Christian  scholarship  of  the  age,  not  to  ignore,  evade,  or  deny 
them,  but  to  face  the  inevitable  trial,  summon  the  witnesses,  sift  the 
evidence,  and,  if  it  can,  disprove  all,  or  any  one  of  them.  And  may 
God  help  the  right. 


14  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY. 

have  led  to  two  great  Secessions,  for  the  sake  of  purity, 
namely,  the  Novatians,  and  the  Donatists.*  When  Con- 
stantine  and  Licinius  first  came  into  power,  (a.  d.  312,) 
they  gave  equal  religious  toleration  to  all  their  subjects. 
But  the  attempt  to  settle  the  controversy  in  North 
Africa,  between  the  Catholics  and  Donatists  by  imperial 
intervention,  (a.  d.  316,)  was  a  departure  from  this  im- 
partial protection  and  equality  before  the  law  ;  and  from 
that  fatal  moment,  persecution  began  under  the  Christian 
name.  The  Emperors,  whether  Orthodox  or  Arian — the 
Bishops  armed  with  imperial  commissions,  whether  Ortho 
dox  or  Arian — became  the  persecutors  of  their  brethren 
of  the  opposite  faith.  The  Pure  Churches,  {Cathari^^ 
— confessedly  orthodox  in  all  things  else — refused  all  the 
attempts  to  bring  them  into  the  Roman  Catholic  Imperial 
Church,  organized  and  established  by  Constantine ;  and 
although  for  a  long  time  honored  and  protected  by  the 
Catholics  themselves,  for  their  virtues,  began  in  the  fifth 
century  to  feel  the  heavy  hand  of  Catholic  intolerance. 
Socrates,  in  his  Ecclesiastical  History,  (a.  d.  445,)  though 
he  records  their  sufferings  from  the  Arians  in  the  fourth 
century,  tells  us  that  Innocent  I.,  Bishop  of  Rome,  in  the 
reign  of  Honorius,  *'  was  the  first  persecutor  of  the  Nova- 
tians at  Rome,  many  of  whose  churches  he  took  away." 
The  same  course  was  pursued  by  Celestinus,  (a.  d.  421,) 
as  well  as  by  Cyril,  bishop  of  Alexandria,  (a.  n.  412). 

If,  now,  we  inquire  into  the  cause  of  this  persecution, 
we  shall  find  it  mainly  owing  to  the  increased  zeal  for  in- 
fant baptism,  awakened  by  the  writings  of  Augustine  in 
this  age.  Other  causes,  doubtless,  combined  with  this; 
but  no  one  who  reads  the  canons  of  the  Council  of  Car- 
thage at  which  Augustine  presided,  (a.  d.   414,)  one  of 

*  See  3foaheim*s  Commentaries,  &c.,  for  a  careful  examination  of  these 
Secessions.     Also,  Lardner,  Hohuison,  and  Neander, 


PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY.  15 

which  runs  in  the  following  terms :  ''  We  will  that  whoso- 
ever DENIES  THAT  LITTLE  CHILDREN  BY  BAPTISM  ARE  FREED  FROM 
PERDITION  AND    ETERNALLY    SAVED,   that    they  be    ACCURSED, '^ 

can  question  this.  Other  evidence  in  confirmation,  if 
necessary,  might  be  adduced  from  the  letters  of  Augustine 
himself.  From  this  influence  came,  also,  the  edict  of 
Honorius,  and  Yalentinian  111.  (a.  d.  413,)  forbidding  re- 
baptisnij  (as  it  was  termed,)  throughout  the  Roman  em- 
pire, under  the  penalty  of  death.  This  edict,  though  aimed 
especially  at  the  Donatists  —  whose  numerous  and  flour- 
ishing churches  were  nearly  ruined  by  its  rigorous  enforce- 
ment— was  soon  applied  to  the  Novatians,  whose  practice 
it  had  always  been  to  baptize  those  who  came  over  to  them 
from  the  Catholic  churches.  From  this  time,  therefore, 
THE  PURE  CHURCHES,  became  the  victims  of  perpetual  per- 
secutions from  the  hands  of  the  Roman  Catholics, 

"  The  first  result  of  the  protectopate  of  the  Christian 
Emperors,"  says  the  Chevalier  Bunsen,  "  was,  that  in  their 
codes  they  converted  church  ordinances,  (that  about  bap- 
tism, for  instance,)  into  statute  laws.  Thus  Justinian, 
in  the  beginning  of  the  sixth  century,  ordered  new-born 
infants  to  be  baptized,  under  a  penalty  for  neglecting  it ; 
a  law  which  still  passes  for  a  Christian  principle  in  the 
code  of  many  a  Christian  State,  Evangelical  and  Chris- 
tian freedom  thus  received  its  death-blow,  from  the  same 
police  crutch  which  was  given  it  for  support."* 

Under  Roman  laws  like  these,  enforced  as  they  were 
in  the  Middle  Ages,  with  new  and  most  sanguinary  edicts 
in  all  the  States  of  Europe,  what  multitudes  must  have 
become  martyrs,  may  be  conjectured  from  what  occurred 
at  the  Reformation,  when  Baptist  martyrs  were  counted 
by  tens  and  even  hundreds  of  thousands. 

We  are  now  gravely  told  by  historians  that,  from  the 

*  Bunsen's  Hippolytus,  Vol.  III.,  p.  249. 


16  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY. 

sixth  century,  the  Gathari  began  to  decline ;  and  we  are 
told  or  led  to  infer,  that  they  ceased  to  maintain  their 
pure  distinctive  principles,  and  gradually  merged  in  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church.  Not  a  shadow  of  proof  is 
offered  for  this  assertion  or  inference,  but  that  they  disap- 
pear from  the  notice  of  Koman  Catholic  writers.  But  the 
northern  "barbarians,"  (as  they  are  called,)  who  broke 
the  Koman  Empire  into  ten  kingdoms,  for  a  long  time 
refused  subjection  to  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  and  gave  re- 
ligious toleration  to  their  subjects.  Especially  was  this 
the  case  with  the  Ostrogoths  in  Italy,  under  the  long  and 
happy  reign  of  Theodoric  the  Great  —  when  all  Italy 
flourished  like  a  garden,  (a.  d.  491-52*7.) 

Afterwards,  in  the  East,  the  Saracens  did  the  same 
thing,  especially  to  that  branch  of  the  succession  of  the 
pure  churches  which  went  under  the  name  of  Paulicians. 
These  last  maintained  themselves,  even  under  the  Greek- 
Roman  emperors,  amid  the  fires  of  persecution,  for  at 
least  six  hundred  years,  (from  a.  d.  653,  to  a.  d.  1260,) 
indeed  till  lost  to  view  by  the  conquest  of  the  empire  by 
the  Turks.  The  Free  Cities  of  Europe  generally — the 
Italian  Republics  of  the  Middle  Ages — the  Moors  in  Spain 
— and  the  Princes  of  Provence,  or  Southern  France — all 
these  at  times,  and  even  for  long  periods,  gave  protection 
to  the  persecuted  Baptists  ;  who  were  known  alike  by  their 
original  name  of  Cathari^  the  Pure  ;  and  by  the  subse- 
quent names  of  Paulicians,  Paterines,  and  Poor  Men  of 
Lyons,  down  to  the  beginning  of  the  twelfth  century — as 
appears  from  the  successive  edicts  issued  against  them.* 
At  this  point  of  time  they  were  joined  by  some  illustrious 

*We  do  not  quarrel  with  Neander  for  his  lamentably  distorted  and 
contradictory  account  of  the  ^^Catharists,"  and  some  other  denominations, 
of  the  Middle  Ages.  He  was  not  satisfied  with  it  himself.  His  candor 
would  have  set  all  right;  but  he  wanted  the  real  key  to  the  problem. 


PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY.  17 

reformers  from  the  Church  of  Rome,  such  as  Peter  de 
Bruis,  (a.  d.  1104  to  1124,)  HexNry  and  Joseph,  his  dis- 
ciples, (a.  D.  1116  to  1148,)  and  Arnold  of  Brescia, 
A.  D.  1135  to  A.  D.  1156,)  with  whom  the  present  volume 
begins  its  ''Memorials  of  Baptist  Martyrs," 

From  the  rapid  review  we  have  now  taken  of  the  history 
of  Baptist  Martyrs  from  the  beginning,  we  gather  some 
interesting  conclusions : 

1.  That  the  Baptists  have  no  difficulty  whatever  in 
tracing  up  their  principles  and  their  churches  to  the  Apos- 
tolic age.  It  has  been  often  said  by  our  enemies,  that  we 
originated  in  the  German  city  of  Munster,  in  1534.  Lam- 
entable must  be  the  weakness  or  ignorance  of  such  an 
assertion,  come  from  whom  it  may.  It  were  easy  to  cite 
eminent  Pedobaptist  historians,  to  refute  this  calumny — 
especially  Limborch  and  Mosheim,  of  the  last  century. 
But  we  prefer  to  quote  two  historians  of  the  present  cen- 
tury, selected  by  the  King  of  Holland  to  draw  up  a  his- 
tory of  the  ''  Origin  of  the  Dutch  Baptists,"  for  the  use  of 
the  government.  Dr.  Ypeig,  professor  of  theology  at  the 
University  of  Groningen,  and  Dr.  J.  J.  Dermont,  chaplain 
to  the  king — both  of  the  Dutch  Keformed  Church — in  the 
authentic  volume  thus  prepared,  and  published  at  Breda, 
in  1819;  come  to  the  following  deliberate  conclusions : 

*'  The  Mennonites  are  descended  from  th«  tolerably  pure  evangelical 
Waldenses,  who  were  driven  by  persecution  into  various  countries  -,  and 
who,  during  the  latter  part  of  the  twelfth  century,  fled  into  Flander;5,  and 
into  the  provinces  of  Holland  and  Zealand,  where  they  lived  simple  and 
exemplary  lives — in  the  villages  as  farmers,  in  the  towns  by  trades — free 
from  the  charge  of  any  gross  immoralities,  and  professing  the  most  pure 
and  simple  principles,  which  they  exemplified  in  a  holy  conversation. 
They  were  therefore  in  existence  long  before  the  Reformed  Church  of  the 
Netherlands,"  Again;  "  We  have  now  seen  that  the  Baptists,  who  were 
formerly  called  Anabaptists,  and  in  later  times  Mennonites,  were  the 
original  Waldenses  ^  and  who  have  long  in  the  history  of  the  Church,  re- 


18  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

ceived  the  honor  of  that  origin.     On  this  account  the  Baptists  may  be 

CONSIDERED  AS  THE  ONLY  CHRISTIAN  COMMUNITY  WHICH  HAS  STOOD  SINCE 
THE  DAYS  OP  THE  ApOSTLES  ,'  AND* AS  A  CHRISTIAN  SOCIETY  WHICH  HAS 
PRESERVED    PURE    THE    DOCTRINES    OF    THE  GoSPEL   THROUGH  ALL  AGES. 

The  perfectly  correct  external  and  internal  economy  of  the  Baptist  de- 
nomination, tends  to  confirm  the  truth,  disputed  by  the  Romish  Church, 
that  the  Reformation  brought  about  in  the  sixteenth  century,  was  in  the 
highest  degree  necessary ;  and  at  the  same  time  goes  to  refute  the  erro- 
neous notion  of  the  Catholics,  that  their  communion  is  the  most  ancient^* 

Let  it  be  remembered  that  the  learned  men  who  say 
this,  and  say  it  aloud  in  the  ear  of  majesty,  after  diligent 
investigation,  are  not  themselves  Baptists.  It  is  a  confes- 
sion of  the  rarest  candor.  *'  Their  rock  is  not  as  our  rock, 
our  enemies  themselves  being  judges." 

But  what  it  has  cost  the  Baptists  thus  to  keep  their 
churches  pure,  through  all  ages,  amidst  abounding  cor- 
ruption, heresy,  schism,  tyranny  and  persecution,  this  book 
of  Baptist  Martyrs  will  in  some  measure  show. 

2.  Baptist  principles  have  always  flourished  wherever 
the  ruling  powers  have  allowed  them  toleration.  Bap- 
tists, it  is  true,  have  often  lighted  up  the  darkness  of  his- 
tory by  the  flames  of  their  martyrs,  and  compelled  the  no- 
tice of  Chronicles  and  of  Councils,  by  the  very  vastness, 
variety,  and  intensity  of  their  sufferings.  Again  and 
again,  as  in  the  primitive  times,  has  the  blood  of  the  mar- 
tyrs been  the  seed  of  the  Church  ;  but  when  a  little  breath- 
ing space  has  been  given  them  in  any  quarter  of  the 
world,  they  have  sprung  up  like  the  grass  from  the  scythe 
of  the  mower ;  or,  rather,  as  the  oak  which  has  bowed  its 
lofty  head  beneath  the  axe,  again  renews  its  branches,  its 
towering  trunk,  Its  verdure  and  its  strength.     Witness 

*  It  is  an  interesting  fact  that  as  a  consequence  of  this,  the  govern- 
ment of  Holland  offered  to  the  Mennonite  churches  the  support  of  the 
State.  It  was  politely,  but  firmly  declined,  as  inconsistent  with  their 
fundamental  principles. — See  Ward's  Farewell  Letters,  1821. 


PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY.  19 

their  rapid  growth  in  the  East,  in  the  seventh  century — 
in  Italy  and  France  in  the  twelfth — in  all  Europe  in  the 
sixteenth — under  the  English  Commonwealth  in  the  seven- 
teenth— and  in  the  United  States  from  the  period  of  the 
American  Revolution.* 

3.  The  Baptists  have  not  only  their  own  Martyrs,  but 
it  is  clear  that  from  the  time  of  Christ  down,  they  have 
furnished  the  purest,  the  most  magnanimous,  and  the  most 
numerous  martyrs  of  all  Christendom.  This  is  true  from 
the  days  of  the  Apostles,  and  throughout  the  Middle  Ages. 
Hear  w^hat  a  Roman  Catholic  prelate,  Cardinal  Hosius, 
president  of  the  Council  of  Trent,  says  on  this  subject, 
to  the  Protestants  of  the  Reformation  : 

"  If  you  behold  their  cheerfulness  in  suffering  persecution,  the  Ana- 
baptists run  before  all  the  heretics.  If  you  have  regard  to  the  number, 
it  is  likely  that  in  multitude  they  would  sioarm  above  all  others,  if  they 
were  not  grievously  plaijued,  and  cut  off  with  the  knife  of  persecution  : 
If  you  have  an  eye  to  the  outward  appearance  of  godliness,  both  the  Lu- 
therans and  the  Zuinglians  must  needs  grant  that  they  far  pass  them  : 
If  you  will  be  moved  by  the  boasting  of  the  word  of  God,  these  be  no 
less  bold  than  Calvin  to  preach ;  and  their  doctrine  must  stand  aloft 
above  all  the  glory  of  the  world,  must  stand  invincible  above  all  power, 
because  it  is  not  their  word,  but  the  Word  of  the  living  God.^'t 

4.  We  see  another  fact,  which  gives  a  peculiar  and  glori- 
ous feature  to  our  denomination.  Much  as  the  Baptists 
have  suffered  from  others,  they  have  never  retaliated — never, 
when  in  power,  pleaded  for  the  principle  of  persecution, 
or  put  it  in  practice ;  but  have  stood  forth,  among  per- 
secuting sects,  solitary  and  alone,  as  the  fearless  champions 
and  examples  of  liberty  of  conscience.  This  they  have 
done,  too,   on  settled  Scriptural  principles,  peculiar  to 

*  Those  who  think  to  do  battle   against  the  Baptists  as  a  modem, 
reactionary,  ephemeral  sect,  will  find  themselves  greatly  mistaken. 
f  Struggles  and  Triumphs  of  Religious  Liberty,  p.  88. 


20  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL    ESSAY. 

their  views  of  baptism  ;  and  hence  have  pleaded  for  liberty 
of  conscience  to  the  fullest  extent.  Witness  the  periods 
of  their  power  in  Italy — in  Armenia,  Syria  and  Asia 
Minor — in  Southern  France — in  the  Mediaeval  Roman 
Republic — in  Poland  in  the  sixteenth  century — in  Eng- 
land, Ireland,  and  especially  Rhode  Island,  in  the  seven- 
teenth— in  the  United  States  at  the  formation  of  the 
American  Constitution ;  and  since  then  in  the  new  Con- 
stitutions of  the  States — in  many  of  which  States  they 
were  a  clear  majority  of  the  population.  No  sect,  whose 
origin  dates  back  two  centuries,  can  share  with  them  this 
glory.  The  Quakers,  the  Moravians,  and  the  Methodists, 
are  of  more  recent  origin.  The  principle  of  religious 
liberty — a  distinguishing  principle  of  the  Baptists  in  all 
ages — we  are  however  happy  to  add,  is  now  universally 
adopted  by  other  denominations  in  the  United  States— 
and  is  fast  spreading  over  the  world. 

5.  The  Baptists — though  for  the  most  part  of  the 
poor  of  this  world,  rich  in  faith  only,  and  unknown  to 
fame,  as  were  the  primitive  Christians — have  yet,  in  almost 
all  ages,  had  of  their  number  men  of  the  most  eminent 
learning  and  ability,  who  died  as  martyrs  to  the  faith. 
From  the  time  of  Novatian,  indeed,  it  has  been  customary 
with  their  adversaries  to  call  the  whole  body  by  the  name 
of  its  most  distinguished  leader — as  if  they  were  only  a  new 
sect,  of  which  he  was  the  originator.  Thus  the  Cathari 
were  called  Novatians — then  Paulicians — then  Petrobrus- 
ians,  Henricians,  Josephists — then  Arnoldists — Waldenses 
— Lollards — Mennonites  ;  nor  were  they  ever  permitted  to 
bear  their  present  name  of  Baptists,  until  after  their  legal 
toleration,  in  England,  in  1688.  Yet  to  them,  as  we  have 
seen,  belong  all  the  inspired  writers  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment— the  sources  of  our  Christian  literature — Matthew, 
Mark,  Luke,  John,  James,  Jude,  Peter,  and  Paul  himself, 


PKELIMINARY   HISTORICAL    ESSAY  21 

the  accomplished  pupil  of  Gamaliel.  To  them  belong  all 
the  Christian  writers  of  the  second  century,  including 
Justin  Martyr,  Ireneeus,  Clement  of  Alexandria,  Tertul- 
lian,  and  in  the  next  age,  Hippolytus,  and  even  Origen 
himself.  And  from  the  time  of  the  Pure  Secession,  in  a.  d. 
251,  they  can  produce  names  among  the  noblest.  Nova- 
tian  himself  had  no  superior  in  his  own  time — as  his  re- 
maining writings  show.  But  most  of  their  writings  have 
perished.  The  same  persecutions  that  robbed  them  of 
their  churches,  liberty,  and  lives,  suppressed  their  schools, 
and  their  books — leaving  them  only  that  one  Book  from 
which  they  would  never  part — the  foundation  of  their 
principles,  the  guide  of  their  practice,  and  the  support  of 
their  hope,  amid  the  terrors  of  martyrdom — the  Bible. 
Churches  supported  by  the  State,  with  stereotyped  creeds, 
canons,  and  forms,  could  afford  to  do  without  the  Bible ; 
but  the  Pure  Churches,  in  their  sublime  dissent  and  pro- 
test, could  not. 

6.  We  learn  that  the  Baptists  have  a  Glorious  Past, 
whose  history  is  yet  almost  unwritten  ;  and  that,  rising 
from  the  deep  roots  of  the  Past,  and  spreading  with  the 
spread  of  the  Scriptures,  and  of  spiritual  religion,  aided 
by  historical  investigation,  and  by  universal  liberty,  they 
have  in  reserve  a  Glorious  Future.  All  they  want  now, 
in  every  country  on  earth,  is  that  same  freedom  which  they 
have  ever  given,  and  rejoice  to  give,  to  ensure  the  ultimate 
triumph  of  their  principles.  As  surely  as  many  shall  run 
to  and  fro,  and  knowledge  be  increased — as  surely  as  the 
light  of  the  moon,  according  to  the  beautiful  figure  of  the 
prophet,  shall  be  as  the  light  of  the  sun,  and  the  light  of 
the  sun  sevenfold,  even  as  the  light  of  seven  days — as  sure 
as  the  time  shall  come  that  the  saints  shall  possess  the 
kingdom--and  the  spirits  of  the  martyrs  shall  live  again 
in  their  successors  on  earth,  and  reign  with  Christ  for  a 


29  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY. 

thousand  years — so  sure,  judging  from  all  the  past,  and 
all  the  present,  is  the  final  triumph  of  Baptist  principles. 
Built  on  the  book  of  God,  in  a  fair  field  nothing  can 
stand  before  them.  Already  they  are  winning  from  all 
others  in  the  United  States,  in  a  steady  stream  of  success* 
- — they  are  reforming  more  thoroughly  the  Reformation  in 
Europe — in  Africa,  and  Asia,  in  the  isles  of  the  ocean, 
and  indeed  at  every  point  where  earnest  piety  is  pressing 
on  to  the  conversion  of  the  world,  they  are  gaining  power 
. — and  the  prospect  now  is,  that  they  will  soon  be  spread 
over  the  entire  East,  including  India,  Burmah,  Siam,  and 
China — nations  comprising  more  than  half  the  population 
of  the  globe.     So,  0  Lord,  let  thy  kingdom  come  ! 

T.  But  if  these  things  be  so.  Baptists  have  a  sacred 
duty  to  perform  ;  first  to  themselves,  and  then  to  all 
Christendom.  They  must  seek  among  themselves  to  re- 
vive THE  Martyr  Spirit — ^'  not  the  spirit  of  fear,  but  of 
power,  and  of  love,  and  of  a  sound  mind.''  They  must 
present  their  bodies,  with  their  souls,  their  hearts  and  all 
their  substance,  a  living  sacrifice  to  God,  holy  and  ac- 
ceptable, which  is  their  reasonable  service.  They  must 
not  be  conformed  to  this  world,  but  transformed  by  the 
renewing  of  their  mind  and  practice  in  a  more  eminent 
degree.  They  must  better  estimate  the  worth  of  their 
own  Scriptural  principles,  the  glory  of  their  past  history, 

*  It  is  recorded  by  Luke,  as  an  evidence  of  the  triumph  of  Christian 
Truth  in  the  days  of  the  Apostles,  that  "the  disciples  multiplied 
greatly,  and  a  great  company  of  the  priests  were  obedient  to  the  faith." 

A  competent  writer  has  affirmed  recently,  that  the  number  of  members 
received  into  the  Baptist  churches,  for  some  years  past,  from  other  de- 
nominations, exceeds  2000  annually  ;  and  that  the  number  of  ministers 
80  received  by  change  of  conviction,  is  equal  to  one  for  every  week  in 
the  year.  This  great  movement  is  in  principle  the  very  reverse  from 
that  of  Bishop  Ives  and  the  Puseyites.  And  it  is  in  addition  to  about 
60,000  converts  yearly.     See  Christian  Review,  January,  1854. 


PRELIMINARY    HISTORICAL    ESSAY.  23 

•nd  the  grandeur  of  their  position  and  destiny.  They 
must  examine,  and  cultivate  themselves  more  perfectly, 
Dy  the  help  of  the  Holy  Spirit — "  that  they  may  know 
what  is  the  hope  of  their  calling,  and  what  is  the  riches 
of  the  glory  of  God's  inheritance  in  the  saints."  They 
must  more  fully  honor,  love  and  pray  for  the  Lord's  peo- 
ple of  every  name ;  and  study  to  do  them  good,  to  profit 
by  all  the  grace  that  is  in  them,  and  seek  to  supply  what 
is  5^et  lacking  in  their  knowledge,  faith,  or  practice. 
They  must  more  fully  display  that  charity  which  suffereth 
long  and  is  kind  ;  which  envieth  not ;  which  vaunteth  not 
itself,  is  not  puffed  up,  doth  not  behave  itself  unseemly ; 
which  seeketh  not  her  own,  is  not  easily  provoked,  thinketh 
no  evil ;  which  rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in 
the  truth ;  which  beareth,  believeth,  hopeth,  endureth  all 
things.  This  is  the  true  spirit  of  Martyrdom — without 
which  we  may  give  all  our  goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and 
.our  bodies  to  be  burned,  and  it  profiteth  us  nothing. 

This  was  the  spirit  of  the  Baptist  Martyrs,  whose  me- 
morials will  be  found  in  this  book.  No  memorial  of  this 
kind  has  before  appeared  in  this  country,  or  even  in  Eng- 
land. Though  confessedly  far  from  complete — embracing 
no  sufferers  for  Christ,  but  those  who  suffered  unto  death — 
going  back  only  to  the  Middle  Ages  in  time,  and  limited 
to  Europe  as  its  field,  and  on  that  limited  theatre  pre- 
ferring the  principle  of  selection  to  that  of  accumulation 
— =it  will  be  found  to  embrace  a  great  variety  of  the  most 
authentic  and  heart-touching,  as  well  as  pure,  noble  and 
triumphant  examples  of  the  principles  of  our  faith  and 
the  power  of  the  Gospel.  It  gives  us  names  in  which,  for 
Christ's  sake.  Baptists  may  justly  glory,  and  which  the 
world  itself  "  will  not  willingly  let  die."  To  specify  no 
more — here  is  Arnold  of  Brescia,  the  brightest  name  of 
Italy  in  the  Middle  Ages — Jerome  of  Prague,  the  most 


24  PRELIMINARY   HISTORICAL   ESSAY. 

accomplished  man  of  his  time — and  Hubmeyer  of  Katis- 
BON,  the  friend  of  Erasmus,  the  fellow-laborer  of  the  first 
Reformers,  classed  by  the  Romanists  themselves  with 
Luther,  Zuingle,  and  Calvin,  as  one  of  the  four  great 
leaders  of  the  Reformation.  Inferior  in  rank  and  learn- 
ing, but  not  in  interest,  is  the  wise  and  good  Hans  op 
OvERDAM — the  bright  youthful  Jacques  Dosie  of  Leuwar- 
den — the  loving  but  faithful  Jeronimus  Segerson  of  Ant- 
werp— and  the  sturdy,  outspoken,  English  yeoman,  Richard 
Woodman  of  Sussex,  whose  mind  seems  as  strong  as  the 
iron  that  he  worked  in  his  daily  toil.  Of  the  softer  sex, 
here  is  the  gentle  but  heroic  Elizabeth  of  Leuwarden — 
Maria  of  Monjou,  happier  than  a  bride  in  the  hour  of  her 
martyrdom — Anne  Askew,  of  the  noblest  blood  of  Eng- 
land, but  still  nobler  by  her  Christian  faith  and  fortitude 
— and  Elizabeth  Gaunt,  the  never  to  be  forgotten  martyr 
to  evangelical  Christian  Charity,  whose  name  has  been 
embalmed  by  Bishop  Burnet. 

Richard  Baxter  somewhere  says,  that  he  ^'  could  as 
soon  die  for  Charity,  as  for  any  article  of  the  Creed." 
While  he  was  uttering  this  just  and  beautiful  sentiment, 
Elizabeth  Gaunt  was  exemplifying  it  in  the  flames ^  at  Ty- 
burn. The  picture  of  her  martyrdom  forms  the  appro- 
priate frontispiece  of  this  volume ;  which  is  also  embel- 
lished by  engravings  of  the  drowning  of  Maria  of  Monjou, 
and  of  the  examination  of  Anne  Askew  in  the  Tower  of 
London,  and  of  her  suffering  at  the  stake  in  Smithfield. 

There  are  many  noble  names,  of  Baptist  Martyrs,  that 
we  miss  here  ;  but  we  cannot  have  everything,  in  a  single 
volume  of  the  size  of  this.  We  doubt  not  this  excellent 
book  will  be  warmly  welcomed  by  every  genuine  Baptist 
in  the  Union. 

Philadelphia,  May  1, 1854. 


PREFATORY    NOTE. 


The  contents  of  this  volume  have  been  princi- 
pally drawn  from  the  old  works  on  martyrdom : 
such  as,  "Foxe's  Acts  and  Monuments,''  and 
"Braght's  Dutch  Marty rology,'"  together  with  the 
more  modern  sources  of  Crosby,  Ivimey,  Mann, 
Jones,  Benedict,  Underhill,  Taylor,  Tonna, 
PuDDicoMBE,  etc.,  ctc.  The  selectipns  have  been 
made  to  secure  as  much  of  interesting  incident, 
evangelical  truth,  and  enlightened  opposition  to 
error,  as  could  be  comprised  in  a  moderate  sized 
volume;  and  the  object  kept  constantly  in  view 
has  been  to  stimulate  to  holy  and  energetic  action 
the  Christians,  and  especially  the  Baptists,  of  these 
United  States. 

It  will  be  observed  by  the  careful  reader  of  this 
volume,  that  considerable  pains  have  been  taken 
to  authenticate  its  statements,  both  general  and 
denominational.  We  believe  that  no  reasonable 
doubt  can  exist  in  reference  to  any  of  the  principal 
facts  here  stated,  or  as  to  each  and  every  one  of 
these  holy  martyrs  belonging  to  the  Baptist  body. 
3  (25) 


26  PREFATORY   NOTE. 

Generally  speaking,  the  evidence  of  this  last  fact 
is  overwhelming.  To  a  New  Testament  Baptist, 
it  must  afford  no  small  gratification,  and  the 
highest  ground  of  thanksgiving  to  God,  that  our 
scriptural  principles  have  been  so  fully  tested,  and 
have  come  out  pure  from  "the  fiery  trial.'* 

To  the  Historical  Essay  which  precedes  the 
work  itself,  and  which  was  written  by  the  esteemed 
Editorial  Secretary  of  the  American  Baptist  Publi- 
cation Society,  the  attention  of  the  reader  is  earn- 
estly requested.  He  will  there  find  the  enunciation 
of  facts  and  principles  which  may  well  lead  to 
serious  reflection  and  persevering  action. 

The  labor  given  to  this  volume  will  not  have 
been  lost,  if,  under  the  Divine  blessing,  the  spir- 
itual interests  of  individual  readers,  and  the  highest 
prosperity  of  our  beloved  country,  are,  in  any  de- 
gree, advanced  by  its  instrumentality. 

B. 

Philadelphia,  1854. 


CONTENTS. 


PAOS 

Preliminary  Essay, H 

Introductory  Remarks, 31 

CHAPTER  I. 

CHRISTIAN   MEN   MARTYRED    ON   THE   CONTINENT   OF   EUROPE. 

Arnold,  of  Brescia, 40 

Jerome,  of  Prague, 43 

Felix  Mantz, 49 

George  Wagner, 55 

Leonhard  Keyser, 60 

Sicke  Snyder,  or  Freerks, 65 

EUert  Jansen, 67 

Eolken  and  Fye, 69 

Hans,  of  Overdam 74 

Jaques  Dosio, 97 

An  Old  Man  in  Holland, 104 

CHAPTER  II. 

HUSBANDS    AND    WIVES    MARTYRED    FOR    CHRIST    ON    THE 
CONTINENT    OF    EUROPE. 

^Balthazar  Hubmeyer  and  his  Wife, 106 

Jeroninus  Segerson  and  his  Wife,  Lysken  Dirks, 123 

John  Deswarte  and  Family, 15J 

(27) 


28  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III. 

CHRISTIAN    WOMEN    MARTYRS    ON    THE    CONTINENT    OF    EUROPE. 

PAGE 

Bichst  Heynes, 152 

Elizabeth, 154 

Maria,  of  Monjou, 161 

A  Young  Lady  of  Fourteen,  and  Others, 163 

CHAPTER  lY. 

CHRISTIAN    MEN   MARTYRS   IN    ENGLAND. 

Gerard  and  his  Friends, 165 

Richard  Woodman, 169 

Jans  Peters  and  his  Friends, 222 

Edward  Wightman, 240 

Benjamin  and  William  Hewling, 244 

CHAPTER  Y. 

CHRISTIAN   WOMEN   MARTYRS   IN   ENGLAND. 

Anne  Askew, 270 

Joan  Boucher, 281 

Mrs.  Brest, 286 

Mrs.  Elizabeth  Gaunt, 297 

Conclusion, 307 


(Bngratiing^. 


Burning  op  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Gatint, ^ Frontispiece, 

Beheading  Block, Vignette, 

Thumb-screw 158 

Droavning  of  Maria  of  Monjou, 162 

Interview  of  Members  op  the  Council  with  Anne  Askew,  ...  276 

Burning   Place  in   Smithfield,  London — Martyrdom  of  Anne 
Askew, 278 


3*  ■    (29) 


Flung  to  the  heedless  winds. 
Or  on  the  waters  cast, 
Their  ashes  shall  be  watched, 
And  gathered  at  the  last : 
And  from  that  scattered  dust, 
Around  us  and  abroad, 
Shall  spring  a  plenteous  seed 
Of  witnesses  for  God. 

Jesus  hath  now  received 

Their  latest  dying  breath ; 

Yet  vain  is  Satan's  boast 

Of  victory  in  their  death. 

Still,  still,  though  dead,  they  speak, 

And,  triumph-tongued,  proclaim 

To  many  a  wakening  land 

The  one  availing  Name. 

Luther. 


(30) 


BAPTIST  MARTYRS. 


II^rTEODUCTORY  EEMAEKS. 

A  CERTAIN  class  of  men  who  have  risen  up  within 
the  last  forty  years,  and  whose  direct  object  seems 
to  be,  if  possible,  to  lead  Christians  back  to  Eome, 
have  spoken  lightly  of  the  martyrs  of  past  ages. 
Over  such  perversion  of  mind  in  such  men,  we  can 
scarcely  wonder,  but  must  deeply  grieve ;  for,  as  a 
recent  writer  on  this  subject  has  well  said,  "If 
ever  men  have  won  for  their  memories  the  meed 
of  honest  praise,  it  was  those  self-devoted  and  lion- 
hearted  martyrs  for  the  truth,  who  counted  not 
their  lives  dear  unto  themselves,  but  stood  their 
ground  in  the  forefront  of  the  battle,  valiant  for 
the  truth  even  till  they  fell,  and  in  falling  con- 
quered." 

Manifold  indications  show  us  that  both  in  this 
country  and  in  Europe,  a  war  of  principles — a 
great  moral  contest  between  Protestantism,  so 
called,  and  Popery,  is  at  hand ;  and  that  the  oppos- 
ing parties  are  likely  to  engage  in  the  conflict  with 
great  energy.  We  earnestly  hope  that  the  friends 
of  truth  will  show  a  warm  adherence  to  its  simple 
and  powerful  principles,  and  that  they  will  look  to 
heaven  for  the  strength  and  wisdom  they  need. 

(31) 


32  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Among  the  means  employed  to  animate  the 
Christian  warrior  in  the  battle,  and  to  impress  the 
minds  of  surrounding  spectators,  the  presentation 
of  the  examples  of  the  "great  cloud  of  witnesses" 
for  the  truth,  who  have  sung  the  praises  of  God  in 
the  prison,  calmly  submitted  to  the  agonies  of  the 
rack,  or  gone  with  cheerfulness  to  the  stake  for  the 
glory  of  Christ,  has  always  produced  a  mighty  ef- 
fect. It  is  true  that  science,  yes,  and  false  religion, 
also,  have  had  their  martyrs,  who  thus  gave  evi- 
dence of  their  sincerity;  but  did  they  ever  compel 
the  profligate  persecutor  to  admit  the  truth,  and  to 
admire  the  spirit  of  ardent  piety  ?  Did  they  ever 
compel  those  who  had  till  then  been  unbelievers 
in  the  Gospel,  to  seek  the  pardon  of  their  sins,  and 
bring  them  forward  to  be  baptized  in  the  room  of 
the  dead  ?  Look  at  the  results  of  the  death  of 
Stephen  on  its  immediate  spectators,  and  on  the 
Church  and  the  world  ever  since ;  and  see  how,  in 
all  ages,  the  blood  of  the  martyrs  has  increased, 
purified,  and  elevated  the  body  of  Christ. 

We  cannot  read  the  accounts  of  martyrs,  to 
which  the  reader  is  now  introduced,  without  a  con- 
viction that  wherever  religion  flourishes  in  the  soul 
of  a  man,  there  is  the  spirit  of  martyrdom,  evinc- 
ing itself  in  his  temper  and  conduct.  Self-denial, 
and  readiness  to  bear  the  cross,  will  always  be  es- 
sential to  a  true  Christian  character.  There  may 
be  martyrdom  without  the  rack,  the  prison,  or  the 
stake ;  but  the  spirit  cannot  exist  unless  there  be 
a  readiness  to  endure  these  things,  if  need  be.  "  I 
am  ready,"  said  one  of  our  missionaries,  at  his  or- 


INTllODUCTCRY   REMARKS.  88 

dination,  ''  I  am  ready,  if  called,  to  die  in  the  mis- 
sionary field ;  unless  I  enter  it  I  can  have  no  peace ; 
engaged  in  the  labor,  I  can  die  in  triumph."  Such 
is  the  spirit  which  becomes  those  who  are  acknow- 
ledged by  Jesus  Christ  as  his  brethren. 

It  cannot  but  afford  high  gratification  to  every 
devoted  Baptist,  that  the  body  to  which  he  belongs 
has  in  every  age  furnished  most  zealous  adherents 
to  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  that  multitudes  have 
literally  '^glorified  God,  in  the  fires."  Cardinal 
Hosius,  one  of  the  Pope's  presidents  at  the  Council 
of  Trent,  says,  "-  if  the  truth  of  religion  were  to 
be  judged  of  by  the  readiness  and  cheerfulness 
which  a  man  of  any  sect  shows  in  sufifering,  then 
the  opinion  and  persuasion  of  no  sect  can  be  surer 
than  that  of  the  Baptists ;  since  there  have  been 
none  for  these  twelve  hundred  years  past  that  have 
been  more  grievously  punished,  or  that  have  more 
cheerfully  undergone,  and  even  ofifered  themselves 
to  the  most  cruel  sorts  of  punishments,  than  these 
people." 

"Anabaptists,"  says  old  Bishop  Latimer,  after- 
wards himself  a  martyr,  "  were  burned  in  different 
parts  of  the  kingdom,  and  went  to  the  stake  with 
good  integrity." 

In  reading  the  records  of  the  martyrs  as  handed 
down  to  the  present  age,  by  writers  of  different 
persuasions,  the  Baptist  Christian  usually  meets 
with  some  difficulty  in  recognizing  his  own  breth- 
ren and  sisters.  On  the  one  hand,  some  of  the 
principles  which  peculiarly  distinguished  the  old 
Baptists,  such  as  the  sovereignty  of  Christ  in  his 


34  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Church,  the  sufficiency  of  the  Scriptures  to  guide 
men  into  all  truth,  the  right  of  private  judgment 
in  all  matters  of  religion,  and  the  entire  freedom  of 
every  man  to  act  for  himself,  under  his  responsi- 
bility to  God,  have,  in  whole  or  in  part,  been  em- 
braced by  some  who  were  not  immersed ;  and  on 
the  other,  very  many  Baptists  have  died  without 
their  practical  testimony  to  the  purity  of  Christian 
ordinances  being  recorded.  Good  old  "  Father 
Foxe,*'  in  his  "  Actes  and  Monuments,"  conceals, 
where  he  can,  the  views  of  our  fathers  on  their 
peculiarities  ;  and  when  he  cannot  do  this,  he  la- 
bors to  extenuate  and  excuse  what  the  good  old 
man  personally  considered  'Hhe  errors  of  the  ana- 
baptists." Still,  however,  the  facts  are  sometimes 
developed,  even  by  himself,  and  in  other  instances 
by  contemporary  writers;  so  that  no  small  dif- 
ficulty presents  itself  in  making  a  selection  from 
the  great  number  of  those  who  died  not  only  for 
the  Gospel,  but  also  to  keep  in  the  Church  "  the 
ordinances  as  they  were  delivered." 

It  will  be  seen  by  the  reader,  as  he  proceeds  in 
the  perusal  of  this  volume,  that  the  spirit  of  mar- 
tyrdom is  distinguished  by  a  supernatural  princi- 
ple, which  the  apostle  Paul  calls  faith^  and  upon 
which  he  suspends  the  purity,  the  self-denial,  and 
the  sufferings  of  the  illustrious  patriarchs,  the  no- 
ble army  of  martyrs,  the  persecuted  Church  of 
God,  from  the  beginning  to  the  hour  when  he  sat 
down  to  write  to  the  Hebrew  Christians.  This 
principle  does  not  spring  from  any  known  natural 
source,  but  is  superior  to  human  philosophy,  per- 


INTRODUCTOEY    REMAUKS.  W 

suasion,  and  conviction.  It  is  the  full  and  entire 
belief  of  God's  own  testimony,  produced  in  tlie 
heart  by  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

Hence,  the  spirit  of  Christian  martyrdom  rests 
on  a  supernatural  support.  God  is  present  to  give 
special  help.  Hence  Latimer,  who  had  long  been 
bowed  down  by  the  infirmities  of  age,  stood  up- 
right and  firm  at  the  stake ;  and  hence  the  timid 
and  delicate  female  has  forgotten  her  feebleness, 
and  shown,  as  the  fire  has  burnt  around  her,  in- 
domitable courage  and  strength. 

This  spirit,  too,  is  associated  with  a  supernatural 
prospect.  It  embodies,  and  realizes,  and  appropri- 
ates the  invisible  things  of  an  eternal  world.  It  pre- 
sents even  the  Deity  himself  present  to  the  mind, 
who  fills  from  his  fullness  all  its  faculties.  Like 
Moses,  the  "martyr  endures  "  as  seeing  Him  who  is 
invisible;"  and  this  makes  the  present  state  shrink 
before  the  soul  into  comparative  insignificance. 
Such  men  have  always  been  "  strong  in  the  Lord 
and  in  the  power  of  his  might." 

How  different  from  all  this  is  the  spirit  of  perse- 
cution. In  all  ages  "  they  that  will  live  godly  in 
Christ  Jesus  must  suffer  persecution ;"  but  who 
can  survey  the  monster  and  his  triumphs  without 
the  profoundest  horror  and  indignation  ?  The 
offspring  of  Satan,  the  birth-place  of  persecution 
was  hell.  Vile  in  its  own  nature,  and  in  its  ob- 
jects, it  is  cherished  by  those  who  delight  to  scat- 
ter arrows,  firebrands,  and  death,  wherever  they 
go.  Persecution  preys  only  cm  the  virtuous;  it 
grasps   after  victims   of  no   other  kind;  and,   as 


36  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

though  tired  of  its  own  existence,  it  aims  with  one 
effort  to  devour  them  all,  and  thus  like  the  ana- 
conda, with  one  mighty  meal,  to  finish  its  work, 
and  procure  its  own  death.  It  is  driven  from  the 
dwellings  of  sincerity  and  truth,  and  is  cherished 
only  by  hypocrisy  and  falsehood.  It  converts  the 
world,  as  far  as  it  prevails,  into  a  moral  aceldama; 
but  it  often  defeats  its  own  purposes  by  exhibiting 
its  odious  features  and  its  execrable  allies  too  pub- 
licly. "He  that  sitteth  in  the  heavens  shall 
laugh"  at  the  designs  of  this  enemy  ;  He  holds  it 
"  in  derision,"  aud  overrules  its  operations  to  pur- 
poses of  his  own  glory. 

Many  who  have  filled  the  seat  of  government, 
and  who  have  supposed  that  their  subjects  were 
bound  to  submit  to  their  rule,  however  arbitrary 
and  opposed  to  the  liberty  which  is  the  birthright 
of  every  man,  have  made  the  religion  of  the  cross 
itself  a  mere  instrument  of  accomplishing  their 
tyrannical  purposes ;  thus  forgetting  their  respon- 
sibility to  God  and  man.  They  have  linked  the 
Church  to  the  State,  and  have  sought  to  make 
every  will  bow  to  their  caprice,  or  determined  to 
subdue  the  opposer  by  their  frown. 

It  is  a  wise  arrangement  of  Divine  Providence 
that  persecution  is  allowed  to  delight  in  public 
cruelty,  and  to  rejoice  in  what  it  esteems  to  be  the 
disgrace  of  its  victims.  A  professor  of  the  re- 
ligion of  Jesus  could  not,  in  the  times  of  papal 
persecution,  recant,  as,  under  the  influence  of  the 
dread  of  suffering,  some  did,  without  carrying  the 
badge  of  it  about  his  dress  till  his  dying  day.  The 


INTRODUCTOP.Y   REMARKS.  37 

records  of  persecntion  describe  to  ns  those  who 
abjured  the  faith  of  Christ,  and  who  were  con- 
demned to  bear  a  fagot  during  their  hves.  These 
persons  were  fastened  to  a  stake  by  the  neck  with 
towels,  and  their  hands  held  fast,  while  they  were 
marked  on  the  cheek  with  a  hot  iron,  which  was 
called  branding  ;  after  which  they  were  compelled  to 
wear  a  fagot  of  sticks,  indicating  their  near  escape 
from  burning,  worked  or  painted  on  the  left  sleeve 
of  their  outer  garment,  and  if  at  any  time  they  laid 
it  aside  the  law  adjudged  them  to  be  burnt.*  What 
must  be  the  character  of  the  religion  which  sanc- 
tions all  this ;  and  which  lays  claim  to  its  recep- 
tion by  the  whole  world ! 

It  cannot  be  otherwise  than  gratifying  to  my 

*  It  may  not  be  without  its  use  to  copy  a  list  of  the  expenses  of 
martyrdom,  two  or  three  centuries  ago,  in  our  fatherland.  The 
thoughtful  reader  will  not  merely  regard  it  as  a  curiosity,  but  will 
devoutly  thank  God  that,  whatever  may  be  in  the  future,  we  have 
not  the  immediate  prospect  of  the  public  money  being  spent  in 
this  manner  in  our  own  happy  country. 

When  Strype  wrote  his  "  Memoirs  of  Archhishop  Cranmer,^^  in  the 
year  1693,  he  found  the  book  in  which  the  expenses  of  the  mar- 
tyrs, during  their  residence  in  Oxford,  were  entered  by  the  bailiffs 
of  the  city,  was  in  existence ;  and  it  is  probably  still  preserved 
among  the  manuscripts  of  that  University.  The  sums  paid  for  the 
burning  of  Archbishop  Cranmer  and  his  two  fellow-sufferers,  Rid- 
ley and  Latimer,  appear  in  the  book  as  follows : — "  For  one 
hundred  of  wood  fagots,  6s. ;  for  one  hundred  and  a  half  of  furze 
fagots,  3s.  4d.  ;  to  the  carriage  of  them,  8d. ;  to  two  laborers, 
Is.  4d.  ;  to  three  loads  of  wood  fagots  to  burn  Ridley  and  Lati- 
mer, 12s. ;  one  load  of  furze  fagots,  8s.  4d.  ;  for  carriage  of  these 
four  loads,  2s.  ;  a  post.  Is.  4d.  ;  for  chains,  3s.  4d. ;  for  staples, 
6d.  ;  for  laborers,  4d."  The  above  are  exact  transcripts  from  the 
bills  by  the  person  who  had  charge  of  the  funeral  piles. 

4 


38  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

readers,  that  these  introductory  remarks  should 
close  with  the  following  lines,  by  the  Earl  of 
Surrey,  who  was  called  to  suffer  in  the  reign  of 
the  capricious  tyrant,  Henry  VIII.,  and  who  wrote 
them  in  prospect  of  that  solemn  event,  over  which, 
however,  he  could  happily  triumph.  We  may 
call  it 

THE    MARTYR'S    HYMN. 


My  life's  a  shade,  my  days 
Apace  to  death  decline  ; 
My  Lord  is  Life,  he'll  raise 
My  dust  again,  e'en  mine. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise. 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviour  see. 

My  peaceful  grave  shall  keep 

My  bones  till  that  sweet  day 
I  wake  from  my  long  sleep, 
And  leave  my  bed  of  clay. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise, 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviour  see. 

My  Lord — his  angels  shall 

Their  golden  trumpets  sound, 
At  whose  most  welcome  call. 
My  grave  shall  be  unbound. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise. 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviour  see. 


INTRODUCTORY    REMARKS.  39 

I  said,  sometimes  with  tears, 

Ah  me  !  I'm  loth  to  die  ; 
Lord,  silence  thou  those  fears; 
My  Life's  with  thee  on  high. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise, 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviour  see. 

What  means  my  trembling  heart 

To  be  thus  shy  of  death  ? 
My  Life  and  I  sha'n't  part, 
Though  I  resign  my  breath. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise. 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviour  see. 

Then  welcome,  harmless  grave; 

By  thee  to  heaven  I'll  go. 
My  Lord — his  death  shall  save 
Me  from  the  flames  below. 
Sweet  truth  to  me, 
I  shall  arise. 
And  with  these  eyes 
My  Saviouff  see. 


CHAPTER  I. 


CHRISTIAN    MEN    MARTYRED    ON    THE    CONTINENT    OF   EUROPE. 


ARNOLD,  OF  BRESCIA. 


Seven  hundred  years,  seven  hundred  years, 
Since  Truth  and  Rome  together  strove  ; 

Since  Heaven  beheld  Italia's  tears, 

And  Arnold  spoke  the  words  we  love  ! 

He  spoke  ; — and  Italy  arose, 

Thrilled  by  her  prophet's  voice  of  flame ; 

Religion  triumphed  o'er  her  foes, 
And  Freedom  sung  her  Arnold's  name 

But  ah,  the  Martyr's  voice  was  hushed. 

His  ashes  strewed  the  Tiber's  flood; 
Truth,  Freedom,  Right,  by  Power  were  crushed, 

And  Rome  was  drunk  with  holy  blood  ! 

J.  N.  Brown. 

About  the  year  1137,  a  reformer  appeared  in 
Italy,  who  proved  himself  a  powerful  opponent  to 
the  Church  of  Eome ;  and  who,  in  fortitude  and 
zeal,  was  inferior  to  no  one  bearing  that  name, 
while  in  talents  and  learning  he  excelled  most. 
This  was  Arnold,  of  Brescia ;  a  man  remarkable 
for  force  of  piety  and  austerity  of  manners. 

In  early  life  he  had  traveled  into  France,  and 
studied  under  the  renowned  Peter  Abelard.  On 
leaving  this  school,  he  returned  into  Italy,  assumed 
(40) 


ARNOLD,    OF    BRESCIA.  41 

the  habit  of  a  monk,  and  began  to  propagate  his 
opinions  in  the  streets  of  Brescia,  where  he  soon 
gained  attention.  He  especially  directed  his  zeal 
against  the  wealth  and  luxury  of  the  Roman  clergy, 
and  his  noble  eloquence  soon  roused  the  inhabit- 
ants of  Brescia,  who  revered  him  as  the  Apostle 
of  religious  liberty,  and  rose  in  rebellion  against 
the  tyranny  of  the  bishops.  The  Romish  Church 
took  alarm  at  his  bold  attacks,  and  in  a  Council 
condemned  him  to  perpetual  silence. 

Arnold  now  left  Italy,  and  found  an  asylum  in 
the  Swiss  canton  of  Zurich.  Here  he  began  his 
system  of  reform,  which  was  never  more  needed. 
For  a  while  he  was  successful,  converting  even  the 
Pope's  Legate ;  but  the  influence  of  the  famous 
Bernard,  Abbot  of  Clairvaux,  made  it  necessary 
for  him  to  leave  the  canton. 

The  bold  man  now  conceived  the  plan  and  ha- 
zarded the  desperate  experiment  of  visiting  Rome, 
and  fixing  the  standard  of  reform  in  the  very  heart 
of  the  capital.  In  this  measure  he  so  far  succeeded 
as  to  win  over  the  Senate  and  effect  a  popular 
change  of  the  government.  The  Pontiff  struggled 
hard  to  maintain  his  ascendency,  but  at  length 
sunk  under  the  pressure.  Eugenius  HI.  withdrew 
from  Rome,  and  Arnold,  taking  advantage  of  his 
absence,  impressed  on  the  people  the  necessity  of 
setting  bounds  to  clerical  authority.  Arnold's 
sentiments  were  influential  among  the  people,  and 
on  a  few  of  the  clergy.  But  not  being  prepared 
for  freedom,  they  carried  their  measures  to  an  ex- 
treme, abused  the  clergy,  and  burnt  their  property. 

4* 


42  BAPTIST    MAETYRS. 

They  required  all  ecclesiastics  to  Bwear  allegiance 
to  tlie  new  constitution.  ''Arnold,"  says  Gibbon, 
"  presumed  to  quote  the  declaration  of  Christ,  that 
his  kingdom  was  not  of  this  world.  The  abbots,  the 
bishops,  and  the  Pope  himself,  must  renounce 
their  state^  or  their  salvation." 

At  length,  in  1155,  the  Pope  laid  an  interdict 
on  the  city.  As  the  sword  was  no  weapon  in 
Arnold's  panoply,  the  noble  champion  retired  to 
Tuscany.  There  he  was  seized,  brought  back  to 
Eome,  condemned,  crucified,  and  burnt.  His 
ashes  were  thrown  into  the  Tiber. 

The  clergy  triumphed  in  his  death,  and  with  his 
ashes,  it  was  thought,  that  his  sect  was  dispersed. 
Yet  his  noble  spirit  of  religious  freedom  did  not 
die,  but  was  cherished  with  his  memory  in  the 
hearts  of  reforming  spirits  in  future  generations, 
such  as  "Wickliffe,  Huss,  and  their  compeers.  And 
even  his  immediate  followers  did  not  become  ex- 
tinct, for  the  Arnoldists  are  often  met  with  in  ec- 
clesiastical history  as  a  body  who  were  worthy  of 
his  name,  and  of  our  high  respect. 

Many  very  decisive  facts  show  Arnold  to  have 
been  a  Baptist.  Bernard  accuses  his  followers  of 
mocking  at  infant  baptism.  Ever\dnus,  in  Ger- 
many, also  says  "  the  Arnoldists  condemn  the  [Ca- 
tholic] sacraments,  particularly  baptism,  which  they 
administer  only  to  the  adult ;  alleging  that  place, 
whoever  shall  believe  and  be  baptized  shall  be 
saved."  And,  in  a  word,  Arnold  himself  was  form- 
ally condemned  by  the  Lateran  Council  for  reject- 
ing infant  baptism. 


JEROME,  OF  PRAGUE. 


This  remarkable  man  was  the  intimate  friend 
and  companion  of  the  celebrated  John  Huss,  in 
the  early  part  of  the  fifteenth  century.  He  was  in 
early  life  distinguished  for  the  pursuit  of  know- 
ledge, and  spent  many  years  in  the  Universities  of 
Prague,  Paris,  Heidelburg,  Cologne,  and  Oxford. 
At  the  latter  university  he  became  acquainted  with 
the  works  of  Wickliffe ;  he  translated  them  into  his 
native  language,  and  on  his  return  professed  warm 
adherence  to  his  views.  In  addition  to  the  fact 
stated  in  a  letter  written  to  Erasmus  from  Bohemia, 
that  the  followers  of  Huss  "  admit  none  until  they 
are  dipped  in  water,  and  they  reckon  one  another, 
without  distinctions  of  rank,  to  be  called  brothers 
and  sisters,"  and  the  statement  by  Eobinson,  that 
the  sermons  of  Huss  were  full  of  ''  anabaptistical 
errors,"  as  they  were  called,  and  that  many  of  his 
followers  became  Baptists,  Orchard  tells  us  that 
he  was  baptized  by  immersion  by  some  of  the 
Greek  Church.  This  view  of  Jerome's  creed,  and 
the  fact  of  his  being  a  layman,  will  account  for 
many  historians  omitting  his  name  altogether. 
But  this  omission  may  well  be  pardoned  while  we 
have  a  full  and  satisfactory  account  furnished  by 
some  of  his  strongest  enemies. 

When  Jerome  heard,  while  at  a  distance,  that 
his  beloved  friend  John  Huss  was  in  danger  be- 

(43)    . 


44  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

fore  the  Council  of  Constance,  in  1411,  he  fled  to 
his  help,  and  was  soon  apprehended,  and  tried  in 
company  with  him,  and  both  were  sentenced  to 
death.  Huss,  however,  suffered  some  months  be- 
fore him.  There  seems  to  have  been  a  period 
when,  like  Cranmer,  Jerome's  faith  faltered,  and 
he  recanted ;  but  his  adherence  to  the  Saviour  was 
soon  renewed,  and  he  died  at  the  same  stake  where 
his  dear  friend  Huss  had  been  sacrificed  to  Christ. 
^'The  sanguinary  annals  of  the  human  race,"  says 
Bonnechose,  "  do  not,  perhaps,  present  any  specta- 
cle more  odious  than  the  funeral  pile  of  Jerome.'* 
Poggius,  who  was  secretary  to  the 'Pope,  a  frank, 
ingenuous  man,  saw  and  heard  Jerome  in  the 
council;  and  wrote,  in  a  letter  to  his  friend  Leonard 
Aretin,  a  eulogium  on  him  in  a  spirit  of  admira- 
tion and  love.  He  says,  ''  Since  my  return  to 
Constance,  my  attention  has  been  wholly  engaged 
by  Jerome,  the  Bohemian  heretic,  as  he  is  called. 
The  eloquence  and  learning  which  this  person  has 
employed  in  his  own  defence,  are  so  extraordinary, 
that  I  cannot  forbear  giving  you  a  short  account 
of  him.  To  confess  the  truth,  I  never  knew  the 
art  of  speaking  carried  so  near  the  model  of  ancient 
eloquence.  It  was,  indeed  amazing  to  hear  with 
what  force  of  expression,  with  what  fluency  of 
language,  and  with  what  excellent  reasoning,  he 
answ^ered  his  adversaries.  Nor  was  I  less  struck 
with  the  gracefulness  of  his  manner,  the  dignity 
of  his  action,  and  the  firmness  and  constancy  of 
his  whole  behavior.  It  grieved  me  to  think  so 
great  a  man  was  laboring  under  so  atrocious  an 


JEROME,    OF   PRAaUE.  45 

a-ccnsation.  Whether  this  accusation  be  a  just  one, 
God  knows:  for  myself,  I  inquire  not  into  the 
merits  of  it :  resting  satisfied  with  the  decision  of 
my  superiors.  But  I  will  just  give  you  a  summary 
of  his  trial. 

"  After  many  articles  had  been  proved  against 
him,  leave  was  at  length  given  him  to  answer  each 
in  its  order ;  but  Jerome  long  refased,  strenuously 
contending  that  he  had  many  things  to  say  previ- 
ously in  his  defence,  and  that  he  ought  first  to  be 
heard  in  general ;  before  he  descended  to  particu- 
lars. When  this  was  overruled,  'Here,'  said  he, 
standing  in  the  midst  of  the  assembly,  'here  is  jus- 
tice— ^here  is  equity  !  Beset  by  my  enemies,  I  am 
pronounced  a  heretic.  I  am  condemned  before  I 
am  examined.  Were  you  Gods  omniscient,  in- 
stead of  an  assembly  of  fallible  men,  you  could 
not  act  with  more  sufficiency.  Error  is  the  lot  of 
mortals ;  and  you,  exalted  as  you  are,  are  subject 
to  it.  But  consider,  that  the  higher  you  are  ex- 
alted, of  the  more  dangerous  consequence  are 
your  errors.  As  for  me,  I  know  I  am  a  wretch 
below  your  notice ;  but  at  least  consider,  that  an 
unjust  action  in  such  an  assembly  will  be  of  dan- 
gerous example.'  This,  and  much  more,  he  spoke 
with  great  eloquence  of  language,  in  the  midst  of 
a  very  unruly  and  indecent  assembly ;  and  thus 
far,  at  least,  he  prevailed ;  the  council  ordered  that 
he  should  first  answer  objections,  and  promised 
that  he  should  then  have  liberty  to  speak.  It  is 
incredible  with  what  acuteness-  he  answered,  and 
with  what  amazing  dexterity  he  warded  oft*  every 


46  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

stroke  of  his  adversaries.  ]!^othing  escaped  him  : 
his  whole  behavior  was  truly  great  and  pious.  K 
he  were,  indeed,  the  man  his  defence  spoke  him, 
he  was  so  far  from  meriting  death,  that,  in  my 
judgment,  he  was  not  in  any  degree  culpable.  In 
a  word,  he  endeavored  to  prove,  that  the  greater 
part  of  the  charges  were  purely  the  inventions  of 
his  adversaries.  Among  other  things,  being 
accused  of  hating  and  defaming  the  holy  see,  the 
pope,  the  cardinals,  the  prelates,  and  the  whole 
estate  of  the  clergy,  he  stretched  out  his  hands, 
and  said,  in  a  most  moving  tone,  '  On  which  side, 
reverend  fathers,  shall  I  turn  for  redress  ?  Whom 
shall  I  implore  ?  Whose  assistance  can  I  expect  ? 
Which  of  you  ^hath  not  this  malicious  charge 
alienated  from  me  ?  Which  of  you  hath  it  not 
changed  from  a  judge  into  an  inveterate  enemy? 
It  was  artfully  alleged  indeed !  Though  other 
parts  of  their  charge  were  of  less  moment,  my  ac- 
cusers might  well  imagine,  that  if  this  were 
fastened  on  me,  it  could  not  fail  in  drawing  upon 
me  the  united  indignation  of  my  judges.'  '' 

It  appears  from  this  secretary,  Poggio  Braccio- 
tini,  that  on  the  third  day  of  his  trial,  Jerome  ob- 
tained leave  to  defend  himself.  "  He  first  began 
with  prayer  to  Grod,  whose  assistance  he  pathetically 
implored.  He  then  referred  to  profane  history, 
and  to  unjust  sentences  given  against  Socrates, 
Plato,  Anaxagoras.  He  next  referred  to  the  Scrip- 
tures, and  exhibited  the  suiferings  of  the  worthies : 
and  then  he  dwelt  on  the  merits  of  the  cause  pend- 
ing,  resting   entirely  on  the  credit  of  witnesses, 


JEROME,    OF    PRAGUE.  47 

who  avowedly  hated  him ;  and  here  his  appeal 
made  a  strong  impression  upon  the  minds  of  his 
hearers,  and  not  a  little  shook  the  credit  of  the 
witnesses.  It  was  impossible  to  hear  this  pathetic 
speaker  without  emotion.  Every  ear  was  capti- 
vated, and  every  heart  touched.  But  wishes  in 
his  favor  were  vain ;  he  threw  himself  beyond  the 
possibility  of  mercy.  Braving  death,  he  even  pro- 
voked the  vengeance  which  was  hanging  over 
him.  Through  this  whole  oration,  he  showed  a 
most  amazing  strength  of  memory.  He  had  been 
confined  almost  a  year  in  a  dungeon,  the  severity 
of  which  usage  he  complained  of,  but  in  the  lan- 
guage of  a  great  and  good  man.  In  this  horrid 
place,  he  was  deprived  of  books  and  papers  ;  yet 
notwithstanding  this,  and  the  constant  anxiety 
which  must  have  hung  over  him,  he  was  at  no 
more  loss  for  proper  authorities  and  quotations, 
than  if  he  had  spent  the  intermediate  time  of 
leisure  in  his  study."  In  his  defence,  "  his 
voice  was  sweet,  distinct,  and  full ;  his  action 
every  way  the  most  proper,  either  to  express  indig- 
nation or  to  raise  pity,  though  he  made  no  affected 
application  to  the  passions  of  his  audience.  Firm 
and  intrepid,  he  stood  before  the  council,  collected 
in  himself,  and  not  only  contemning,  but  seeming 
even  desirous  of  death.  The  greatest  character  in 
ancient  story  could  not  possibly  go  beyond  him. 
If  there  is  any  justice  in  history,  this  man  will  be 
admired  by  all  posterity.  I  speak  not  of  his  errors : 
let  these  rest  with  him.  What  I  admired  was  his 
learning,  his  eloquence,  and  amazing  acuteness. 


48  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

God  knows  whether  these  things  were  not  the 
groundwork  of  his  ruin. 

"  Two  days  were  allowed  him  for  reflection ; 
during  which  time  many  persons  of  consequence, 
and  particularly  my  lord  cardinal  of  Florence,  en- 
deavored to  bring  him  to  a  better  mind.  But  per- 
sisting obstinately  in  his  errors,  he  was  condemned 
as  a  heretic. 

"With  a  cheerful  countenance,  and  more  than 
stoical  constancy,  he  met  his  fate  ;  fearing  neither 
death  itself,  nor  the  horrible  form  in  which  it  ap- 
peared. "When  he  came  to  the  place,  he  pulled 
off  his  upper  garment,  and  made  a  short  prayer 
at  the  stake ;  to  which  he  was  soon  after  bound, 
with  wet  cords  and  an  iron  chain,  and  inclosed  as 
high  as  his  breast  in  fagots.  Observing  the  exe- 
cutioner about  to  set  fire  to  the  wood  behind  his 
back,  he  cried  out,  'Bring  thy  torch  hither.  Per- 
form thy  ofiice  before  my  face.  Had  I  feared 
death,  I  might  have  avoided  it.'  As  the  wood  be- 
gan to  blaze,  he  sang  a  hymn,  which  the  violence 
of  the  flames  scarcely  interrupted. 

"  Thus  died  this  prodigious  man.  The  epi- 
thet is  not  extravagant.  I  was  myself  an  eye- 
witness of  his  whole  behavior.  "Whatever  his 
life  may  have  been,  his  death,  without  doubt, 
is  a  noble  lesson  of  philosophy.'' 

To  this  account  of  Jerome,  furnished  by  an 
enemy  to  his  faith,  we  have  only  to  add  that  he 
suffered  martyrdom,  May  20,  1416. 


FELIX  MANTZ. 


This  distinguished  man,  a  leader  in  the  Refor- 
mation in  Germany,  was  a  native  of  Zurich,  and 
was  educated  in  all  the  learning  of  the  age,  his 
father  being  a  canon  of  the  great  minster  in  the 
place  of  his  birth.  In  1519  we  find  him  studying 
the  Hebrew  language  with  the  eminent  Zuingle, 
under  the  tuition  of  Carlstadt,  and  to  have  been 
on  terms  of  intimacy  with  that  Eeformer,  as  well 
as  with  Myconius,  Capito,  and  other  leaders  of  the 
Swiss  Reformation. 

About  the  year  1522,  he  began  to  doubt  as  to 
the  scriptural  character  of  infant  baptism,  having 
many  conversations  on  that  subject  with  Zuingle, 
who  was  at  first  inclined  to  embrace  the  same 
views.  The  progress  of  his  investigations  led  him 
further  to  object  to  tithes  and  usury,  and  to  desire 
to  lay  aside  the  peculiarities  of  Rome  more  rapidly 
than  was  consistent  with  the  opinions  of  Zuingle. 
This  led  to  a  separation,  and  to  a  final  adoption, 
on  the  part  of  Mantz,  of  the  sentiments  of  the 
Baptists.  In  1523,  he  began  to  preach  publicly  on 
the  subject  of  baptism,  and  to  urge  the  necessity 
of  a  church  constituted  in  accordance  with  the 
word  of  God.  ^'He  wished,"  says  Zuingle,  "to 
form  a  church  free  from  sin."  In  this  way  did  the 
reformer  express  the  sentiment  of  Mantz — that 
a   church    of   Christ   should  consist  of  believers 

.     m      5  (49) 


50  BAPTIST    MyVRTYRB. 

baptized  into  Christ,  and  of  them  only.  Mantz 
likewise  objected  to  the  presence  and  use  of 
secular  power  in  the  church  of  God. 

In  the  three  disputes  held  at  Zurich  during  the 
year  1525,  Mantz  appears  to  have  taken  part, 
and  after  that  of  March,  to  have  been  thrown  into 
prison,  from  which,  however,  he  escaped.  His 
pious  reference  to  the  escape  of  Peter  by  the  as- 
sistance of  an  angel,  as  in  some  measure  applica- 
ble to  his  own,  gave  his  enemies  occasion  to 
assert,  that  he  said  an  angelic  being  had  likewise 
opened  to  him  the  gates  of  his  prison-house. 

He  now  diligently  proclaimed  the  freeness  of 
the  gospel  in  different  parts  of  Switzerland,  and 
taught  the  true  constitution  of  the  church.  He 
was  baptized  by  Blaurock,  a  companion  in  suffer- 
ing; and  in  the  fields  and  woods,  as  occasion  of- 
fered, with  the  Hebrew  and  Greek  Scriptures  in 
his  hand,  he  expounded  the  word  of  God  to  the 
people  who  flocked  to  him.  As  this  was  con- 
trary to  the  prohibitory  command  of  the  magis- 
trates of  Zurich,  he  was  deemed  a  rebel  against 
legitimate  authority,  and  an  exciter  of  the  peo- 
ple to  sedition. 

Towards  the  end  of  1526,  he  was  seized  and  im- 
prisoned in  the  tower  of  Wellenberg  He  con- 
fessed that  he  had  baptized  contrary  to  the  edict. 
It  was  right,  he  said,  to  obey  God  rather  than 
man.  Exhibiting  no  sign  of  repentance,  he  was 
at  last  adjudged,  and  on  the  5th  of  January,  1527, 
was  drowned. 

BuUinger  thus  writes,  "  As  he  came  down  from 


FELIX   MANTZ.  51 

the  Wellenberg  to  the  fishmarket,  and  was  led 
through  the  shambles  to  the  boat,  he  praised  God 
that  he  was  about  to  die  for  his  truth ;  for  anabap- 
tism  was  right,  and  founded  on  the  word  of  God, 
and  Christ  had  foretold  that  his  followers  would 
suflfer  for  the  truth's  sake.  And  the  like  discourse 
he  urged  much,  contradicting  the  preacher  who 
attended  him.  On  the  way,  his  mother  and  brother 
came  to  him,  and  exhorted  him  to  be  steadfast ;  and 
he  persevered  in  his  folly,  even  to  the  end.  "When 
he  was  bound  upon  the  hurdle,  and  was  about  to 
be  thrown  into  the  stream  by  the  executioner,  he 
sung  with  a  loud  voice,  '  Into  thy  hands,  O  Lord, 
I  commend  my  spirit.'  And  herewith  was  he 
drawn  into  the  water  by  the  executioner,  and 
drowned.  His  body  was  then  taken  to  the  Place 
and  buried  at  St.  Jacob's."  ''  It  is  reported  here," 
says  Capito,  writing  to  Zuingle,  near  the  end  of 
the  same  month,  ^'  that  your  Felix  Mantz  hath  suf- 
fered punishment,  and  died  gloriously ;  by  which 
the  cause  of  truth  and  piety,  which  you  sustain,  is 
weighed  down  exceedingly." 

Mantz  left  behind  him  a  paper,  written  in  his 
last  days,  with  a  view  to  encourage  his  companions 
in  their  sorrows,  which  the  reader  will  be  glad  to  see. 

"My  heart  rejoiceth  in  God,  w^ho  giveth  me 
much  understanding,  and  guideth  me  that  I  may 
escape  eternal  and  endless  death.  Wherefore  I 
praise  thee,  0  Christ,  Lord  of  heaven !  that  thou 
succorest  me  in  my  affliction  and  sorrow ;  which 
Saviour  God  hath  sent  me  for  an  example  and  a 
light,  who  hath  called  me  before  my  end  is  come, 


62  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

to  Ms  heavenly  kingdom,  that  I  might  have  eternal 
joy  with  him,  and  love  him  in  all  his  judgments, 
which  shall  endure  both  here  and  hereafter  in 
eternity,  without  which  nothing  avails  or  subsists. 
Therefore  are  there  so  many,  who  not  having  this 
are  deceived  with  a  vain  opiuion.  But,  alas  !  nowa- 
days, we  find  men  who  boast  themselves  of  the 
gospel,  speak  much  of  it,  teach  and  publish  it,  to 
be  full  of  hatred  and  envy ;  who  have  in  them  no 
divine  love,  whose  deceit  is  known  of  all  the 
world,  even  as  we  have  been  told,  that  in  these 
last  days,  they  that  come  to  us  in  sheep's  clothing 
are  ravening  wolves,  who  hate  the  godly  in  the 
earth,  and  hinder  the  way  of  life  and  to  the  true 
sheepfold.  Thus  do  the  false  prophets  and  hypo- 
crites of  this  world;  with  the  mouth  they  curse 
and  vtdth  the  same  mouth  likewise  pray,  whose 
life  is  bad ;  these  call  upon  the  magistrates  to  put 
us  to  death,  and  herewith  they  destroy  the  body 
of  Christ.  But  I  will  praise  the  Lord  Christ,  who 
hath  all  patience  with  us.  He  instructeth  us 
with  his  divine  grace ;  he  showeth,  after  the  na- 
ture of  God,  his  heavenly  Father's  love  to  all  men, 
which  none  of  the  false  prophets  can  do. 

'^Herein  must  we  observe  the  difference;  the 
sheep  of  Christ  seek  the  honor  of  God.  This  they 
choose.  They  suffer  not  themselves  to  be  hindered 
by  gain  or  temporal  good,  for  they  are  in  the  keep- 
ing of  Christ.  The  Lord  Christ  forces  no  man 
into  his  glory;  but  the  willing  and  ready  alone 
enter,  who  come  thereto  by  true  faith  and  baptism. 
When  a  man  bringeth  forth  the  true  fruits  of  re- 


FELIX   MANTZ.  63 

pentance,  for  him  is  purchased  and  procured,  by 
Christ,  through  grace,  the  heaven  of  everlasting 
joy,  by  the  shedding  of  his  innocent  blood,  which 
he  so  willingly  poured  out.  Thereby  he  showeth 
us  his  love,  and  endueth  us  with  the  might  of  his 
Spirit ;  and  he  who  receiveth  and  exerciseth  this, 
groweth  and  becometh  perfect  in  God. 

^^Love  to  God,  through  Christ,  will  alone  endure 
and  profit ;  no  boasting,  railing,  or  threatening. 
There  is  nothing  but  love  with  which  God  is 
pleased.  He  who  can  show  no  love  shall  find  no 
place  with  God.  The  true  love  of  Christ  shall 
cast  oiF  the  enemy.  It  is  set  before  him  who  will 
be  an  heir  with  Christ,  that  he  must  be  merciful, 
even  as  his  heavenly  Father  is  merciful.  Christ 
never  accused  any  one,  as  the  false  teachers  now 
do  ;  whence  it  appears  that  they  have  not  the  love 
of  Christ,  nor  understand  his  word.  Yet  they  will 
be  shepherds  and  teachers.  But  at  last  they  must 
tremble,  when  they  find  that  eternal  pain  will  be 
their  reward,  if  they  do  not  amend. 

"  Christ  never  hated  any,  and  his  true  servants 
likewise  hate  no  one,  continuing  thus  to  follow 
Christ  in  the  right  way,  as  he  has  gone  before 
them.  This  light  of  life  they  have  before  them, 
and  rejoice  to  walk  therein ;  but  those  who  are  full 
of  hatred  and  envy,  who  thus  wickedly  betray, 
accuse,  smite,  and  wrangle,  cannot  be  Christians. 
These  are  they  who  as  thieves  and  murderers  run 
before  Christ,  and  under  a  false  show  shed  inno- 
cent blood.  Thereby  may  men  know  them,  they 
take  no  part  with  Chri.st.  for  through  malice^  as 


54  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

tlie  children  of  Belial,  tliey  annul  the  command 
of  Jesus  Christ ;  as  Cain  slew  his  brother  Abel 
when  God  accepted  his  offering. 

"Herewith  I  will  finish  my  discourse,  and  re- 
quest all  the  pious  to  meditate  on  the  fall  of  Adam, 
who  followed  the  serpent's  counsel ;  and  being 
disobedient  to  God,  death  followed  him.  So  shall 
it  also  befall  those  who  receive  not  Christ,  but 
oppose  him ; — who  love  this  world,  and  have  no 
love  to  God.  With  this  I  conclude.  I  will  abide 
close  to  Christ  and  confide  in  him ;  he  knoweth 
all  my  distresses,  and  can  help  me  out  of  them. 
Amen." 


GEORGE    WAGNER. 


George  Wagner,  of  Emmerick,  was  appre- 
hended at  Munich,  in  Bavaria,  on  account  of  four 
articles  of  faith.  First,  that  tlie  priests  cannot  for- 
give men  their  sins  :  secondly,  he  did  not  believe 
that  a  man  can  bring  God  from  heaven :  thirdly, 
he  did  not  believe  that  God,  or  Christ,  is  bodily  in 
the  bread  that  the  priest  places  upon  the  altar ; 
but  that  it  is  the  bread  of  the  Lord  :  and  fourthly, 
he  held  not  the  belief  that  the  baptism  of  water 
saves  men. 

Because  he  would  not  retract  his  articles,  he  was 
put  to  great  torture,  so  that  the  prince  had  great 
com.passion  upon  him,  personally  visited  him  in 
prison,  and  earnestly  exhorted  him,  saying,  that 
if  he  would  recant,  he  would  call  him  his  friend 
during  his  life.  In  like  manner  the  steward  of  the 
prince's  household  persuaded  him  to  recant,  and 
made  him  many  promises.  Finally,  his  wife  and 
child  were  brought  into  the  prison  and  placed  be- 
fore him,  to  move  him  thereby  to  a  recantation. 
However,  he  could  not  be  moved,  but  said,  that 
though^  his  wife  and  child  were  indeed  so  dear  to 
him,  that  the  prince  with  his  whole  land  could  not 
purchase  them  from  him,  yet  nevertheless  he  would 
not  forsake  the  Lord  his  God.  Many  priests  and 
others  also  visited  him  to  persuade  him  to  renounce 
what  were  considered  his  erroneous  doctrines,  but 

(55) 


56  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

he  continued  firm  and  immovable,  and  was  finally 
condemned  to  die  by  the  flames. 

When  he  was  delis^ered  over  to  the  executioner, 
and  led  into  the  middle  of  the  city,  this  excellent 
man  said,  "  This  day  will  I  confess  my  God  to  the 
glory  of  Christ  Jesus,  that  such  happiness  is 
afforded  me  in  the  sight  of  all  the  world."  His 
face  was  not  pale,  nor  were  his  eyes  distorted. 
With  a  smile  playing  on  his  lips  he  went  to  the 
fire,  where  the  executioner  bound  him  to  the  lad- 
der, and  hung  a  bag  of  gunpowder  to  his  neck ; 
and  when  he  had  taken  leave  of  a  Christian  bro- 
ther, he  was  thrust  into  the  fire,  and  calmly  yielded 
up  his  spirit  to  Christ,  February  8,  1527. 

The  historian  of  this  event  tells  us  that  the 
sheriff,  whose  name  was  Der  Eisen  Reich,  of 
Landsberg,  mshing,  while  riding  home  from  the 
burning  of  Wagner,  to  seize  some  of  the  com- 
panions of  the  martyr,  with  a  view  to  their  suffer- 
ing death  also,  died  suddenly  in  the  night,  being 
found  dead  in  his  bed.  "  Thus,"  saith  our  author, 
^^he  was  snatched  away  by  the  wrath  of  God." 

A  few  further  particulars  of  Wagner  cannot  be 
uninteresting  to  the  reader.  As  the  day  of  his 
martyrdom  dawned,  two  executioners  entered  his 
cell,  to  draw  him  to  the  place  of  burning.  At 
the  same  time  some  Franciscan  monks  entered 
with  them,  and  forced  themselves  on  the  con- 
demned man,  in  their  usual  way,  to  instruct  and 
prepare  him  for  his  last  hour.  But  he  begged 
them  to  return  to  their  cloister,  as  their  services 
were  entirely  useless  to  him.     At  the  steps  of  the 


GEORGE   WAGNER.  '  57 

conrt-honse,  wliat  thej  called  his  erroneous  propo- 
sitions were  again  read  to  him,  and  he  was  once 
more  entreated  to  recant:  but  he  still  remained 
immovable. 

Among  the  Catholics  who  sought  to  recall  Wag- 
ner to  Popery  was  one  Conrad  Schaider,  the 
master  of  St.  Peter's  school  in  Munich,  and  a  doc- 
tor of  divinity.  He  asked  him,  "  My  dear  George, 
art  thou  not  afraid  of  the  death  to  which  thou 
wilt  so  soon  be  exposed  ?  If  thou  wert  now  free, 
wouldst  thou  not  most  joyfully  return  to  thy  wife 
and  children?" 

George. — Were  the  judges  to  let  me  go  free, 
ah !  to  whom  would  I  rather  hasten  than  to  my 
wife  and  dearest  children  ? 

Conrad. — Recant,  then,  and  thou  shalt  go  free. 

George. — My  wife  and  -children  are  indeed  so 
dear,  that  the  duke,  at  no  price,  not  even  for  the 
revenue  of  his  land,  could  purchase  them  of  me ; 
but  for  the  great  love  of  God  I  will  willingly  let 
them  go. 

As  they  came  to  the  place  of  execution,  Conrad 
again  addressed  him  :  "  Believe,"  said  he,  "  in  the 
mystery  of  the  altar,  and  do  not  say  that  it  is  a 
mere  sign."  "1  confess,"  said  Wagner,  "that  the 
sacrament  is  a  sign  and  emblem  of  the  body  and 
blood  of  Jesus  Christ,  who  suffered  the  death  of 
the  cross  for  our  redemption." 

"  George,  what  thinkest  thou  ?"  continued  the 
teacher ;  "  thou  boldest  baptism  to  be  nothing, 
and  yet  thou  knowest  that  Christ  was  baptized  in 
Jordan."     George    then    showed    the   design   of 


58  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Christ's  baptism,  and  how  it  was  necessary,  in 
order  to  redeem  sinners,  for  Christ  to  die  on  the 
cross.  "Even  that  Christ,"  he  continued,  "is  my 
Saviour  ;  for  faith  in  whom  I  to-day  yield  up  my- 
self, and  whom  to-day  with  a  good  confession  be- 
fore all,  I  will  glorify." 

Conrad  made  other  attempts  to  bring  George 
Wagner  to  the  admission  of  what  he  called  the 
mystery  of  the  altar ;  and  failing  in  that,  to  per- 
suade him  to  open  his  heart  to  a  confessor,  in 
order  to  obtain  absolution.  After  a  short  time. 
Doctor  Conrad  commenced,  in  a  clear  voice,  the 
repetition  of  the  Lord's  prayer,  to  which  Wagner 
responded  as  follows  : — 

Conrad. — Our  Father  !  who  art  in  heaven. 

George. — My  God !  thou  art  truly  our  Father, 
and  no  other  ;  to-day  I  long  to  be  with  thee. 

Conrad. — Hallowed  be  thy  name ! 

George. — 0  my  God !  how  little  and  how  coldly 
is  thy  name  hallowed  ! 

Conrad. — Thy  kingdom  come! 

George. — To-day,  I  hope,  to  my  great  joy,  to 
enter  therein. 

Conrad. — Let  thy  will  be  done  on  earth  as  it  is 
in  heaven ! 

George. — My  Father !  I  am  willing  that  thy  will 
be  done,  not  mine. 

Conrad. — Give  us  to-day  our  daily  bread. 

George. — Jesus  Christ  is  the  true  and  heavenly 
manna.     He  will  feed  me  to-day. 

Conrad. — Forgive  us  our  trespasses,  as  we  for- 
give them  that  trespass  against  us. 


GEOBGE    WAGNER.  59 

Geoege. — I  forgive  with  my  whole  heart,  all  that 
my  friends  or  enemies  have  ever  done  against  me. 

Conrad. — Lead  us  not  into  temptation,  but  de- 
liver us  from  evil. 

George. — 0  good  God  !  with  out  doubt  thou  wilt 
to-day  deliver  me ;  for  in  thee  alone  I  trust. 

In  a  similar  way  Wagner  responded  to  the  re- 
petition of  the  creed.  On  arriving  at  the  place  of 
execution,  Doctor  Conrad  gave  a  parting  pledge, 
that  if  George  would  only  express  his  belief  in  the 
use  of  prayers  for  the  dead,  he  w^ould  say  a  mass 
for  him.  But  George  besought  his  prayers  for  him 
while  he  was  yet  alive,  that  God  would  grant  him 
patience,  courage,  and  a  Christian's  faith  to  en- 
dure the  punishment  of  death  which  awaited  him. 

The  executioner  now  seized  him  and  bound  him 
to  the  ladder ;  but  he  continued  to  declare  to  the 
spectators  the  chief  points  of  Christian  truth. 
When  some  Christian  brethren  who  were  present, 
requested  him  to  give  them  from  the  midst  of  the 
fire  some  token  of  his  firm  and  unshaken  faith,  he 
answered,  "This  shall  be  the  strongest  mark  of 
my  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  that  so  long  as  I  can 
open  my  mouth  I  will  not  cease  to  praise  God,  and 
confess  the  name  of  my  Saviour."  When  thrown 
into  the  flames,  he  cried  with  a  loud  voice, 
"Jesus!  Jesus!"  As  the  executioner  cruelly 
turned  him,  he  often  repeated,  with  a  clear  em- 
phatic tone,  the  name  of  Jesus.     Thus  he  died. 


LEONHARD  KEYSER. 


"While  in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  believers  in 
Jesus  on  the  continent  of  Europe,  greatly  increased 
in  number  and  purity,  as  the  sanctified  result  of 
persecution,  there  were  some  instances  very  strik- 
ingly illustrative  of  the  power  of  the  gospel. 

Among  these  we  may  mention  a  learned  Catho- 
lic priest  in  Bavaria,  named  Leonhard  Keyser. 
Guided  by  the  Spirit  and  Providence  of  God,  he 
was  led  to  study  the  writings  of  Zuingle  and  Lu- 
ther, and  afterwards  to  visit  Wittemberg,  and  con- 
verse with  the  evangelical  doctors  of  that  city,  with 
whom  he  also  communed  in  the  Supper  of  the 
Lord.  Returning  into  Bavaria,  and  observing  the 
doctrines  and  conduct  of  the  Baptists,  as  well  as 
of  Luther  and  of  Zuingle,  he  took  up  the  cross, 
and  united  with  the  Baptists,  the  separated  church 
of  the  Lord,  in  the  year  1525.  And  immediately, 
with  great  power  and  zeal,  he  proceeded  in  his 
ministry,  undismayed  by  all  the  tyranny  exerted 
against  the  faithful  by  water,  fire,  and  sword. 

In  the  second  year  of  his  ministry  among  the 
Baptists,  Keyser  was  apprehended  at  Scherding, 
on  the  river  Inn,  about  eight  miles  south  of  Pas- 
sau,  and  by  the  bishop  of  the  last  named  place, 
with  other  priests  and  prebendaries,  was  condemned 
to  the  flames  on  the  Friday  before  the  day  of  St. 
Lawrence,  in  August  of  the  same  year.  The  chief 
(60) 


LEONHARD    KEYSER.  61 

heads  of  accusation  against  him  were,  that  faith 
alone  justifies,  without  good  works;  that  there 
are  only  two  sacraments;  that  the  gospel  was 
not  preached  by  the  papists  in  Germany;  that 
confession  is  not  God's  command;  that  Christ 
is  the  only  satisfaction  for  sin;  that  there  i^  no 
purgatory ;  that  Christ  is  the  only  Mediator ;  and 
that  all  days,  (alluding  to  feast  or  saints'  days),  are 
alike  with  God.  At  the  trial  of  this  worthy  min- 
ister of  Jesus  Christ,  a  criminal  was  brought  to 
swear  against  him  that  he  deserved  to  die. 

The  enemies  of  truth  conducted  Keyser  to  the 
stake  bound  on  a  cart,  followed  by  the  priests. 
They  spoke  to  him  in  Latin,  but  he  answered  them 
in  German,  for  the  sake  of  the  people  at  large,  in 
which  language  they  would  not'  speak  at  his  trial, 
though  he  more  than  once  demanded  it. 

When  he  came  to  the  field  outside  the  town,  and 
was  approaching  the  fire,  he  bent  on  one  side  over 
the  cart,  and  gathered  a  flower,  bound  as  he  was, 
and  said  to  the  judge  who  rod.e  on  horseback  by 
the  side  of  the  cart; — "My  lord,  I  have  plucked 
a  flower ;  if  you  can  burn  me  and  this  flower,  then 
have  yoa  righteously  condemned  me;  but  other- 
wise, if  you  can  neither  burn  me  nor  this  flower  in 
my  hand,  then  reflect  on  what  you  have  done  and. 
repent."  The  judge,  with  three  executioners, 
therefore  threw  many  fagots  of  wood,  more  than 
ordinary,  into  the  flames,  in  order  by  a  great  fire 
to  burn  him  immediately  to  ashes ;  but  when  the 
wood  was  entirely  consumed,  his  body  was  taken 
out  of  the  fire  unburnt.     The  three  executioners 

6 


62  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

and  their  servants  then  took  fresh  wood,  and  made 
a  large  fire,  which  being  consumed,  his  whole 
body  still  remained  unburnt,  his  hair  only  had  been 
burnt  and  his  nails  turned  brown.  The  ashes 
being  brushed  from  his  body,  it  was  smooth  and 
clear,  and  the  flower  was  found  unfaded  in  his 
hand,  not  the  least  burnt.  The  executioners  then 
hewed  his  body  in  pieces,  and  threw  the  pieces  into 
a  new  fire,  which  again  being  burned  out,  the 
very  pieces  lay  unconsumed  in  the  fire.  Lastly, 
they  took  the  pieces  and  threw  them  into  a  run- 
ning stream  called  the  Inn.  The  judge  was  thereby 
so  terrified,  that  he  resigned  his  office,  and  left  the 
place.  His  principal  servant,  who  was  with  the 
judge,  having  seen  and  heard  this,  came  himself 
to  us  in  Moravia,  became  our  brother,  lived  a 
godly  life,  and  so  died.  Our  teachers  took  this 
down  from  his  mouth,  and  wrote  it  for  a  memo- 
rial, and  now  to  the  honor  of  God,  publish  it  and 
make  it  known. 

Such  is  the  account  furnished  by  Van  Braght, 
the  historian  of  the  Dutch  Baptist  Martyrs;  which 
is  substantially  confirmed  by  Frank,  J.  P.  Twisck, 
and  the  distinguished  Martin  Luther,  who  some 
months  afterwards  seems  to  have  been  induced,  by 
various  prevalent  reports,  to  examine  into  the  mat- 
ter. He  says,  '^  They  now  came  to  the  gravel  upon 
the  river  Inn.  Upon  the  gravel,  near  to  the  gibbet, 
the  layers  of  wood  for  the  burning  were  prepared. 
As  an  arm  of  the  river  encircled  the  gravel,  Key- 
ser  was  placed  on  a  cart  and  the  executioner  with 
him,  that  they  might  cross  over  it.     When  placed 


LEONHAED    KEYSER.  63 

in  the  circle,  he  expressed  his  hearty  forgiveness 
of  all  those  who  had  brought  him  there,  as  he 
hoped  for  forgiveness  of  God.  He  exhorted  the 
people  to  pray  earnestly  with  him  for  all  his  ene- 
mies. He  entreated  the  pardon  of  any  whom  he 
might  have  offended  in  his  life,  or  by  his  example  ; 
also  that  they  would  pray  for  him,  that  he  might 
die  in  the  exercise  of  a  firm  Christian  faith.  He 
further  prayed  for  those  who  were  not  yet  en- 
lightened. The  sheriff*  interrupted  him,  and  said 
to  the  executioner,  '  Make  an  end  of  it,  thou 
knowest  what  is  commanded  thee.' 

''  Leonhard  was  soon  undressed,  and  lay  down 
in  his  shirt  in  a  small  cavity  in  the  wood  pile. 
He  was  then  bound  upon  the  wood.  As  they 
bound  him,  he  besought  the  people  to  sing,  '  Come, 
Holy  Spirit,'  etc.  A  popish  priest,  w^ho  had  be- 
fore been  sent  away,  again  approached  him,  and 
said,  '  If  in  aught  he  had  erred,  he  should  pray  to 
God  for  mercy.'  Leonhard  made  no  reply.  The 
priest  asked,  '  Would  he  die  as  a  pious  Christian  V 
Answer:  'Yes.'  The  priest  then  exhorted  him 
on  baptism.  The  fire  was  kindled,  and  from  its 
midst,  with  loud  cries,  he  said,  '  Jesus,  I  am  thine, 
save  me.'  After  this,  his  hands,  feet,  and  head 
were  burnt  away.  As  the  fire  diminished,  the  ex- 
ecutioner took  a  pole,  and  rolled  off*  the  body,  then 
laid  more  wood  on  the  fire.  The  executioner  next 
hewed  a  hole  in  the  body,  then  thrust  in  a^  sword. 
Afterward  he  stuck  the  pole  in  the  body,  and  again, 
on  the  pole,  lifted  it  up  on  the  pile,  thus  consum- 
ing," etc. 


64  BAPTIST    MARTYES. 

Thus  abruptly,  as  Mr.  Underhill  has  remarked, 
ends  Luther's  narrative,  and  some  other  blanks  in 
it  lead  to  the  conclusion,  that  his  information  sub- 
stantially agreed  with  the  first  printed  one.  The 
same  writer  very  properly  adds,  "  We  do  not  see 
in  Luther's  account  anything  but  what  may  easily 
be  reconciled  with  the  other,  allowing  for  the  cer- 
tain difficulty  of  any  two  persons,  on  such  an  occa- 
sion, pressed  on  all  sides  by  a  curious  crowd,  being 
witnesses  of  precisely  the  same  events,  and  the 
consequent  discrepancy  (apparently  so  at  least)  in 
their  accounts  which  must  ensue.  Many  singular 
and  marvellous  events  are  related  by  martyrolo- 
gists  of  the  sufferers  of  those  times,  as  may  be 
seen  in  the  '  Actes  and  Monuments  of  John  Foxe.' 
They  were  regarded  by  the  persecuted  as  tokens 
of  divine  favor,  and  were  repeated  from  mouth  to 
mouth  to  animate  each  other  in  the  bitter  trials 
through  which  they  were  called  to  pass.''  "We 
may  add,  that,  whatever  view  the  reader  may  take 
of  this  extraordinary  statement,  we  see  no  reason 
to  doubt  the  credibility  of  the  witnesses. 


SICKE    SNYDEE,    OR   FREERKS  * 


In  the  montli  of  Frebruaiy,  1531,  the  harboring 
,of  any  Baptist  preachers  in  the  IsTetherlands  was 
forbidden  by  authority,  and  a  reward  offered  for 
their  apprehension.  An  edict  was  issued  imme- 
diately after  this,  directing  that  those  who  having 
been  rehaptized^  as  it  was  termed,  recanted,  were 
to  be  admitted  to  mercy,  but  the  obstinate  were  to 
be  punished  with  the  utmost  severity. 

Soon  after  this  became  known,  a  devoted  disciple 
of  Christ,  a  staunch  champion  in  his  Master's 
cause,  usually  called  Sicke  Snyder,  separated  him- 
self from  the  ungodly  church  of  Eome,  and  from 
her  false  and  fanciful  worship.  He  resolved  on 
walking  in  the  footsteps  of  the  true  Lawgiver,  and 
only  to  hear  his  voice,  as  speaking  in  the  Scrip- 
tures. Conforming  himself  to  the  appointment 
and  example  of  Christ,  he  received  Christian  bap- 
tism on  confession  of  his  faith,  as  a  token  of  being 
a  regenerated  child  of  God,  and  as  testifying  his 
holy  obedience. 

As  the  consequence  of  this  act,  he  became  a 
prisoner  in   bonds  at  Leeuwarden,  in  Friesland, 

*  Freerks  seems  to  have  been  the  proper  name  of  this  man, 
as  appears  not  only  from  historians,  but  from  the  record  of  his 
sentence  in  the  court  book  of  Friesland.  Snyder,  as  he  was  usu- 
ally called,  is  indicative  of  his  trade,  which  was  that  of  a 
Tailor. 

6*  {,Q^) 


66  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

and  endured  much  siiftering  from  the  adversaries 
of  the  truth.  And  as  he  could  not,  by  the  torments 
he  sustained,  be  persuaded  to  apostatize,  he  was 
there  put  to  death  by  the  sword,  displaying  great 
firmness  in  testifying  to  the  truth,  and  showing  its 
power  on  his  soul  by  the  manner  of  his  death. 
His  sentence  is  thus  recorded  in  the  criminal  sen- 
tence-book of  the  court  of  Friesland : — '^  Sicke 
Freerks,  on  this  20th  of  March,  1531,  is  condemned 
by  the  court  to  be  executed  with  the  sword,  his 
body  shall  be  laid  on  the  wheel,  and  his  head  set 
upon  a  stake,  because  he  has  been  rebaptized,  and 
perseveres  in  that  baptism." 

The  effect  of  the  martyrdom  of  this  poor  but 
pious  man,  who  does  not  appear  to  have  been  even 
a  minister,  was  very  important,  as  it  first  led  the 
mind  of  the  distinguished  Menno  Simon  to  more 
Scriptural  views  of  baptism  than  he  had  formerly 
entertained.  He  himself  says : — "  It  now  happened, 
that  I  heard  from  some  brethren  that  a  God-fearing 
pious  man,  Sicke  Snyder  by  name,  had  been  be- 
headed at  Leeuwarden,  because  he  had  renewed 
his  baptism.  This  sounded  wonderfully  in  my 
ears,  that  any  one  should  speak  of  another  bap- 
tism. I  searched  the  Scriptures  vrith  diligence, 
and  reflected  earnestly  upon  them,  but  could  find 
no  trace  of  infant  baptism." — See  the  "  Life  and 
Times  of  Menno,"  by  the  Rev.  J.  ISTewton  Brown, 
recently  published  by  the  American  Baptist  Pub- 
lication Society. 


ELLERT   JANSEN. 


The  arrival  of  the  emperor,  Charles  the  Fifth, 
in  the  Low  Countries,  in  the  year  1540,  was  the 
signal  for  the  renewal  of  the  grievous  persecutions 
which  had  already  been  endured  by  the  Protestants 
of  Holland.  Several  severe  proclamations  were 
issued  against  both  the  persons  and  writings  of  the 
so-called  Anabaptists,  on  whom  this  persecution 
chiefly  fell.  It  continued  with  unrelenting  rigor 
and  barbarous  cruelty  for  more  than  fifteen  years. 
During  this  period  the  faith  of  the  sufferers  was 
strengthened  by  the  Christian  ministrations  of  the 
eminent  Menno  Simon,  who  found  refuge  in  the 
habitations  of  his  companions  in  tribulation,  from 
the  unceasing  pursuit  of  his  foes.  The  following 
narratives  are  but  specimens  of  the  courageous 
piety  of  that  age  and  country. 

In  the  year  1549,  there  lay  in  prison,  at  Am- 
sterdam, on  account  of  religion,  about  twenty  per- 
sons, called  Anabaptists,  all  of  whom,  but  five 
men  and  three  women,  made  their  escape,  by  the 
help  of  some  kind  and  sympathizing  friends. 

A  certain  tailor,  named  Ellert  Jansen,  might 
have  escaped  with  these  his  companions,  but  he 
refused,  saying,  ''  I  am  now  so  well  satisfied  to  be 
offered  up,  and  feel  myself  at  present  £0  happy, 
that  I  do  not  expect  to  be  hereafter  better  pre- 
pared."    He  was  lame  in  one   of  his  legs,  and 

(67) 


68  BAPTIST    MARTYRS, 

thought  that  though  he  might  escape,  he  would  be 
easily  discovered  and  retaken  ;  he  therefore  stayed 
behind,  and  was  burnt  on  the  20th  of  March  1549, 
with  the  other  four  men  and  three  women,  accord- 
ing to  their  sentence,  "  For  that  they  had  suffered 
themselves  to  be  rebaptized,  and  had  wrong  no- 
tions of  the  sacraments."  As  he  was  being  led  to 
execution,  he  cried  out,  ^'This  is  the  most  joyful 
day  in  my  whole  life.'' 


EELKEN  AND  EYE. 


In  tlie  year  1549,  about  three  weeks  before 
Easter,  two  excellent  men  of  tbe  Baptist  body 
were  apprehended  in  the  town  of  Olde  Boor,  in 
"West  Friesland ;  their  names  were  Eelken  and 
Fye.  They  were  brought  before  the  magistrates, 
and  there  boldly  confessed  their  faith.  They  first 
asked  Eelken,  Who  has  given  you  permission  to 
collect  the  people  together  to  instruct  them  ? 

Answer. — God  has  permitted  me. 

Question. — ^What  have  you  taught  ? 

Answer. — Ask  those  who  heard  it,  what  was 
taught  among  us;  for  you  have  apprehended  a 
woman  who  heard  it. 

They  then  asked  the  woman  what  she  had  heard 
fi:'om  Eelken. 

Answer. — He  read  the  four  Evangelists,  Paul, 
Peter,  John's  epistles,  and  the  works  [Acts]  of 
the  Apostles. 

Eelken  was  then  again  examined. 

Question. — ^What  do  you  hold  concerning  the 
Sacrament  ? 

Answer. — I  know  nothing  of  your  baked  God. 

Question. — Friend,  consider  what  you  say  ;  for 
these  words  will  cost  you  your  life.  "What  do  you 
hold  concerning  the  Mother  of  God  ? 

Answer. — Much. 

(69) 


70  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Question. — ^What  say  you,  did  not  the  Son  of 
God  receive  flesh  and  blood  from  Mary  ? 

Answer. — ^N'o.  I  hold  that  which  the  Son  of 
God  himself  testifies  thereof. 

Question. — ^What  is  your  judgment  of  our  holy 
church  of  Rome  ? 

Answer. — I  know  nothing  of  your  holy  church, 
and  I  acknowledge  it  not.  In  the  whole  of  my 
life,  I  have  never  been  in  a  holy  church. 

Question. — ^'You  speak  very  bitterly;  I  am 
concerned  for  you  ;"  said  a  gentleman  of  the  coun- 
cil, "  and  fear  your  life  will  be  forfeited.  Have 
you  not  been  baptized  ?" 

Answer. — ^I  have  not  been  baptized;  but  I 
earnestly  desire  to  be. 

Question. — ^What  do  you  think  of  those  false 
teachers  who  go  about,  and  baptize  people  ? 

Answer. — Of  false  teachers  I  do  not  approve ; 
but  I  have  greatly  longed  to  hear  a  teacher  sent 
of  God. 

They  said,  "  We  have,  however,  heard  that  you 
were  to  be  a  teacher." 

Eelken  asked,  ^'Who  has  made  me  a  teacher  ?" 
and  they  told  him  they  did  not  know.  Eelken 
said,  "  Do  you  ask  me,  since  you  know  it  not  ? 
How  then  should  I  know  it  ?  I  know  no  one  who 
has  made  me  a  teacher ;  but  God  has  given  me 
all  those  things  for  which  I  have  prayed  to  him." 
They  said,  ''  We  have  now  written  down  all  the 
articles  that  we  have  at  this  time  demanded  of 
you  ;  if  there  be  anything  therein  for  which  you 
are  sorry,  we  will  readily  take  it  out."     The  ques- 


EELKEN   AND    FYB.  71 

tion  in  reply  to  the  nobleman  was,  "  Do  you  think, 
then,  that  I  would  deny  God?" 

Eelken  and  his  companion,  Fye,  both  received 
sentence ;  and  as  soon  as  they  were  brought  to- 
gether they  embraced,  yea,  kissed  each  other's 
hands  and  feet  with  great  affection,  so  that  all 
were  astonished  who  saw  and  heard  it.  The 
capuchin  friars  and  servants  ran  and  said  to  the 
magistrates,  ''S'ever  did  persons  love  each  other 
like  these."  Eelken  spoke  to  Fye,  saying,  ^'Dear 
brother,  do  not  reproach  me  for  having  been  the 
occasion  of  your  being  brought  into  suffering." 
Fye  answered,  ''Dear  brother,  do  not  think  that: 
for  it  is  the  power  of  God." 

After  the  sentence  was  pronounced,  they  were 
kept  till  the  third  day.  Eelken  was  executed  first 
by  the  sword.  "While  the  sentence  upon  Fye 
was  being  read,  he  heard  nothing  of  it  by  reason 
of  his  great  joy;  and  not  knowing  what  was  done, 
or  about  to  be  done  with  Eelken,  he  sang  and 
leaped,  praising  and  thanking  God;  and  said, 
''This  is  the  only  way." 

They  now  led  Fye  to  the  ship  in  which  Eelken 
lay  beheaded,  and  the  wheel  on  which  he  should 
be  laid,  and  also  the  stake  at  which  Fye  was  to 
stand  to  be  burned.  In  the  ship  his  hands  were 
unbound.  But  though  he  sat  still,  the  monks 
said,  "Bind  him  again."  The  executioner  said, 
"Do  you  bind  him;"  but  the  constable  of  the 
castle  ordered  him  to  bind  Fye  again.  A  woman 
who  saw  it  greatly  wept;  but  Fye  said,  "Weep 
not  for  me,  but  for  your  sins."     Turning  to  the 


72  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

executioner,  he  asked,  "  What  will  you  do  to  me  ?" 
The  answer  was,  "That  you  will  see."  ''Yes, 
yes,"  said  Fye,  ''  do  what  you  please.  I  have 
already  committed  myself  to  the  Lord's  hands." 

He  was  now  attended  by  some  of  his  brethren, 
who  had  accompanied  many  of  the  common  peo- 
ple. Fye,  seeing  some  of  his  acquaintances,  called 
out,  "  Friends,  rejoice  with  me  over  such  a  mar- 
riage feast  as  is  provided  for  me."  As  he  ascended 
towards  the  gallows,  some  of  the  brethren  spoke 
to  him,  and  greatly  rejoiced  with  him,  saying, 
"  This  the  narrow  way ;  this  is  the  winepress  of 
the  Lord;  to  this  belongs  the  crown."  But  when 
the  constable  of  the  castle  heard  the  shout,  he 
cried  out,  ''  Let  no  one  touch  them,  on  forfeiture 
of  life  and  goods."  The  executioner  having  for- 
gotten his  implements,  ran  into  the  town  to  fetch 
them. 

In  the  meantime,  the  constable,  with  the  two 
monks,  had  got  Fye  into  the  confessional,  annoy- 
ing him  with  bread  and  wine,  but  they  could  not 
prevail  on  him  to  take  any,  for  he  did  nothing  but 
sing  and  speak,  praising  and  thanking  God.  Un- 
able to  succeed,  and  the  executioner  having  re- 
turned, they  said  to  Fye,  "  How  is  it  that  you  are 
so  obstinate,  seeing  you  say  you  are  a  member  of 
Christ  ?  Will  you  not  then  do  such  a  work  of 
mercy,  as  to  receive  this  bread  and  wine  as  wine 
and  bread  for  our  sake  ?"  He  answered,  "  For 
your  bread  and  wine  I  do  not  hunger ;  food  is 
prepared  for  me  in  heaven."  Finding  they  could 
not  overcome   his   determined   spirit,   they   said, 


EELKEN   AND    EYE.  73 

"Go,  heretic;  go."  The  constable  said,  "I  have 
in  my  life  seen  many  a  heretic ;  but  never  a  more 
obstinate  one  than  this." 

Fye  standing  ready  to  meet  death,  said  to  the 
executioner,  "  Master,  have  you  completed  your 
work?"  He  answered,  "ISot  yet."  Fye  said, 
"  Yes,  here  is  the  sheep  with  which  you  have  to 
do."  The  executioner  then  went  to  him,  and  tore 
open  his  shirt ;  next  he  took  the  cap  from  his  head, 
and  filled  it  with  gunpowder.  Pye,  standing  at 
the  post  at  which  he  was  to  be  strangled,  ex- 
claimed, "  0  Lord,  receive  thy  servant !"  Where- 
upon he  was  strangled,  and  then  burnt.  Thus  did 
he  pass  to  his  beloved  Lord.  The  common  people 
cried  out,  "  That  was  a  pious  man !  If  he  was 
not  a  Christian,  there  is  not  one  in  the  whole 
world!" 


HANS,  OF  OYERDAM. 


This  admirable  man  was  pnt  to  death  at  Ghent, 
in  1550.  The  following  account  of  his  imprison- 
ment and  pretended  trial  was  ^vritten  by  himself, 
and  cannot  fail  to  afford  both  interest  and  instruc- 
tion to  every  reader  whose  heart  is  under  the  in- 
fluence of  genuine  piety. 

Hans,  of  Overdam,  with  his  fellow  prisoners  for 
the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ,  wishes  to  all  his 
brethren  and  sisters  in  the  Lord,  grace,  peace,  and 
ardent  love  from  God  the  Father,  and  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  to  whom  be  praise,  honor,  and  ma- 
jesty, for  ever  and  ever.     Amen. 

And  you,  the  best  beloved  of  my  heart,  be  not 
cast  down  on  my  account  ^  but  praise  the  Lord 
that  he  is  to  me  so  good  a  Father,  that,  for  the 
testimony  of  Christ,  I  am  permitted  to  suffer  bonds 
and  imprisonment,  and  hope  likewise  to  ascend  to 
him  from  the  flaming  pile.  The  Lord  strengthen 
me  by  his  Holy  Spirit.     Amen. 

My  heart's  wish,  the  deepest  desire  of  my  soul, 
is,  O  dear  brethren  and  sisters  in  the  Lord,  that 
you  always  give  increasmg  diligence  to  fulfill  the 
vocation  by  which  you  are  called  by  God  the  Fa- 
ther, through  Jesus  Christ,  to  the  majesty  and 
glory  of  the  kingdom  of  his  beloved  Son,  who  has 
purchased  the  church  with  his  own  blood;  and 
given  himself  for  it,  that  he  might  sanctify  and 
(74) 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  75 

cleanse  it  with  the  -vvashing  of  water  by  the  word  ; 
that  he  might  present  it  to  himself  a  glorious 
church,  not  having  spot  or  wrinkle,  or  any  such 
thing,  but  that  it  should  be  holy  and  without 
blemish. 

Therefore,  0  my  dear  friends,  behold  what  great 
love  the  Father  hath  bestowed  upon  us,  that  he 
has  not  spared  his  only  Son ;  and  how  Christ  has 
so  willingly  given  himself,  to  suffer  for  us  the  most 
shameful  death  of  the  cross,  and  to  shed  his  pre- 
cious blood,  in  order  to  wash  and  cleanse  us  from 
our  sins.  Oh !  dear  brethren  and  sisters,  let  us 
regard  this  ;  let  us  diligently  watch  and  pray,  that 
the  saving  grace  of  God,  and  the  unspeakable 
love  of  the  Father  and  of  Christ,  be  not  neglected 
or  forgotten  by  us,  through  any  temporal  anxieties 
or  perplexities  of  this  world,  its  lusts  and  desires, 
which  kill  the  soul ;  so  that  as  spots  or  wrinkles 
we  should  be  removed  from  the  glorious  Church  of 
Christ ;  yea,  as  unfruitful  branches  be  cast  into 
fire.  For,  dearly  beloved,  it  is  not  enough  that 
we  have  received  baptism  on  the  confession  of  our 
faith,  and  by  that  faith  have  been  ingrafted  into 
Christ,  unless  we  hold  fast  the  beginning  of  our 
confidence  steadfast  unto  the  end.  Is  there,  there- 
fore, one  who  feels  that  he  is  become  a  spot  or 
wrinkle,  let  him  see  to  it,  and  hasten  before  that 
day  overtake  him,  as  a  snare  for  the  bird,  and  re- 
pent with  unfeigned  grief  and  sorrow  ;  and  lift  up 
the  hands  which  hang  down,  and  the  feeble  knees, 
and  run  with  vigor  the  race  set  before  him,  that 
what  is  lame  be  not  turned  out  of  the  way,  but 


76  'BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

rather  that  it  become  sound  and  strong.  Let  ns 
pass  the  time  of  our  pilgririiage  here  in  the  fear  of 
God,  and  keep  ourselves  unspotted  from  this  vile 
and  sinful  world,  which  is  full  of  deceit,  snares, 
and  nets,  which  the  devil  employs  to  deceive  the 
souls  of  men,  to  entrap  them  by  various  kinds  of 
lust  and  delusions. 

0  Lord,  defend  thy  pilgrims,  who  walk  hoping  in 
thee,  from  this  murderer,  and  expect  help  and  com- 
fort from  thee  alone.  0  heavenly  Father,  through 
Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,  wilt  thou  fulfill  the  good 
work  which  thou  hast  begun  in  us  to  the  praise 
and  glory  of  thy  holy  name.  0  thou  almighty  and 
eternal  God,  how  surpassing  all  understanding  is 
thy  mercy,  and  thy  fatherly  compassion  towards 
them  that  fear  and  love  thee !  0  Father !  who 
would  not  fear  such  a  God,  who  knoweth  how  to 
deliver  them  that  are  his,  although  they  seem  here 
for  a  short  space  to  be  forsaken,  despised  by  all, 
rejected  and  accursed  in  this  world !  Yet  he  for- 
sakes not  his  own,  but  gives  them  comfort  by  his 
Holy  Spirit  in  their  hearts,  which  makes  us  bold 
and  joyful  to  suffer  reproach  for  his  name's  sake. 
And  we  hope,  through  the  goodness  of  God,  that 
our  pilgrimage  will  speedily  be  ended,  and  we  be 
released  from  this  miserable  world,  this  vale  of 
tears,  and  the  earthly  house  of  this  our  tabernacle 
be  dissolved,  that  we  may  be  at  home  with  our 
heavenly  Father,  and  receive  the  crown  of  eternal 
life  which  is  set  before  us,  and  which  we  trust 
shall  by  no  creature  be  taken  from  us.  May  we 
for  this  be  strengthened  by  the  almighty  and  eter- 


HANSj    OF    OVERDAM.  77 

nal  God,  the  Father   of  mercies,  through  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord.     Amen. 

Understand,  dear  friends,  what  happened  to  me 
before  my  imprisonment,  and  how  they  have  dealt 
with  us  since  I  have  been  in  confinement. 

It  happened  at  the  time  that  four  friends  were 
offered  up,  when  I  wrote  a  hymn,  and  I  had  seen 
them  burnt,  that  I  heard  it  said  that  the  other 
friends  who  still  remained  in  prison  had  been  as- 
sailed with  greater  subtlety  and  deception,  by  ad- 
vice of  the  false  prophets,  who  have  always  in 
their  thoughts  the  devil's  craft,  which  indeed  they 
had  boasted  they  would  practise.  Our  fiiends 
who  remained  there  were  two  young  servants  and  a 
young  girl.  We  w^ere  very  diligent  in  daily  prayer 
for  them,  fearing  lest  by  some  deceitful  allurement 
they  should  be  beguiled.  We  were  also  daily  ap- 
prehensive that  they  would  be  put  to  death.  I  was 
much  exercised  in  mind,  on  account  of  their  youth, 
to  go  and  stand  in  front  of  the  scaffold  where  they 
should  suffer,  that  in  case  they  were  in  anything 
cast  down  I  might  be  able  to  comfort  them,  and 
rebuke  the  monks  who  greatly  distress  our  friends 
when  led  out  to  suffer  death.  But,  alas  !  the  poor 
young  creatures  were  not  advanced  so  far;  they 
incautiously  suffered  themselves  to  be  led  into  dis- 
putations with  the  false  prophets,  notwithstanding 
they  had  been  sufficiently  warned  to ..  avoid  such 
discussions  as  they  valued  their  souls,  for  every 
one  has  not  the  gift  of  disputation.  Boldly  to 
confess  the  truth,  as  it  has  been  received  from  the 
Lord,  becomes  the  Christian  well. 
7* 


78  BAPTIST    MAIITYES. 

The  poor  lambs,  however,  having  entered  into 
discussion,  became  confused  in  their  consciences, 
and  in  consequence  fell  away  from  the  truth.  The 
false  prophets  acquired  great  renown  by  this,  as 
having  won  their  souls,  and  brought  them  again 
into  the  "  holy  church."  Hearing  that,  I  was  much 
cast  down  in  mind  and  spirit  on  account  of  the 
loss  of  the  poor  sheep,  and  because  the  false  pro- 
phets and  the  council  gloried  so  much  in  the  fall 
and  ruin  of  the  poor  lambs  and  sucklings,  to  which 
they  had  been  brought  by  means  even  of  oaths,  as 
you  shall  hear. 

Thus  cast  down,  I  made  my  complaint  to  God, 
groaning  over  the  power  and  violence  of  the  devil, 
which  he  employs  by  the  hands  of  his  children 
who  believe  not  the  truth ;  and  it  came  into  my 
mind  that  I  would  write  some  short  letters,  and 
placard  them  in  some  public  place,  rebuking  their 
vain  triumph  over  the  loss  of  the  poor  sheep  whose 
souls  they  had  murdered.  I  then  began  to  write, 
and  in  writing  my  soul  became  so  inflamed,  that 
instead  of  a  short  piece  of  a  hand's  breadth,  it 
grew  to  an  address  of  a  whole  sheet.  The  Lord 
opened  my  understanding,  so  that  I  was  surpri- 
singly led  to  show  the  magistrates,  from  the  Scrip- 
tures, their  punishment  and  end,  with  that  of  the 
whole  Romish  church.  I  also  said  that  I  wished 
and  desired  the  opportunity  of  a  public  disputation 
with  all  their  learned  men  before  a  large  fire,  and 
that  whoever  should  be  vanquished  should  be 
thrown  into  the  fire,  while  the  poor  lambs  should 
be  left  in  peace,  and  that  they  should  lay  aside  the 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  79 

sword  of  the  magistrate,  and  strive  alone  with  the 
sword  of  the  word  of  God. 

When  this  writing  was  put  in  order,  I  allowed 
the  brethren  to  see  it,  who  were  well  pleased  with 
it,  and  had  six  copies  of  it  taken  by  a  brother  who 
could  write  better  than  myself.  In  the  mean  time 
the  poor  corrupted  sheep  were  let  out  of  prison, 
having  recanted  every  thing.  One  young  servant 
died  the  same  day  he  was  released,  a  mile  from 
the  town,  and  became  an  example  or  mirror  to 
those  who  thus  seek  to  save  their  lives.  At  the 
time  this  took  place,  I  came  from  Antwerp  with 
Hansken  Keeskooper,  having  arranged  our  mat- 
ters with  relation  to  the  letter,  which  we  sent  to 
the  magistrates  of  the  town  on  Saturday  evening. 
Two  copies  were  posted  in  the  middle  of  the  town, 
that  every  one  might  read  them.  We  greatly 
praise  and  thank  the  Lord  who  enabled  us  to  do 
this  before  we  were  apprehended,  for  we  were  all 
betrayed  by  a  Judas  who  was  amongst  us,  and 
who  seemed  to  be  the  most  pious  brother  of  all 
who  were  there,  so  hypocritically  could  he  carry 
himself,  and  which  he  had,  as  we  now  perceive, 
long  practised,  in  order  to  betray  a  number  of 
friends.  This  traitor  was  present  w^hen  the  letters 
were  placarded.  It  was  also  arranged  to  meet  the 
other  friends  on  Sunday  morning  to  speak  the 
word  of  God,  for  I  wished  to  take  leave  of  the 
brethren,  and  to  proceed  on  my  journey  the  next 
day ;  but  the  Lord  be  praised,  who  had  otherwise 
appointed. 

Early  in  the  morning  Hansken  went  with  me  to 


80  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

the  wood  where  we  were  to  assemble,  but  we  did 
not  find  our  friends  at  the  place  where  we  expected. 
We  sought  them  a  ftiU  half  hour,  and  thought  they 
had  not  come,  because  it  had  rained  the  previous 
evening  exceedingly  hard.  We  were  about  to 
return  home,  when  I  said,  "Let  us  go  on,  per- 
haps they  are  before  us;"  and  we  sang  softly,  that 
if  they  were  there  they  might  hear  us.  I  then 
heard  a  rustling  in  the  wood,  and  said  to  Hansken, 
"  Here  are  our  friends."  We  then  stood  still,  that 
we  might  see  who  were  approaching.  Three  per- 
sons then  came  forward  with  arms  and  staves.  I 
said,  "  Well,  comrades,  have  you  been  seeking  a 
hare,  and  not  caught  it?"  Their  countenances 
then  became  deadly  pale ;  they  came  to  us,  and 
taking  me  by  the  arm,  said,  "  Surrender  yourself 
a  prisoner."  They  apprehended  us  and  said,  "We 
have  arrested  a  great  many  more."  We  then  saw 
a  whole  wagon  load  of  our  brethren,  sitting  bound, 
and  three  justices,  with  all  their  officers,  guarding 
them  :  a  large  number.  As  we  approached  them, 
we  saluted  our  brethren  with  the  peace  of  God, 
and  comforted  them  with  the  word  of  the  Lord, 
encouraging  them  now  valiantly  to  strive  for  his 
name's  sake.  We  also  rebuked  the  justices  for 
being  so  desirous  of  shedding  innocent  blood. 

They  then  fastened  Hansken  and  me  together 
with  iron  bands,  and  also  our  thumbs.  We  thought 
they  were  about  to  take  us  into  the  town ;  but  as 
it  was  in  another  lordship  we  were  apprehended, 
we  were  obliged  to  go  half  a  mile  farther.  We 
esteemed  it  a  great  happiness  to  be  so  long  to- 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  81 

gether,  and  that  going  along  we  were  able  to  com- 
fort each  other  with  the  word  of  the  Lord  before 
we  were  separated.  We  were  led  to  the  castle  a 
mile  from  the  town.  There  we  were  kept  together 
in  a  chamber,  and  remained  for  three  days :  for 
that  was  a  right  of  the  lordship  where  we  had 
been  apprehended.  "We  thanked  and  praised  the 
Lord  onr  God,  that  he,  in  his  wisdom,  had  so  ar- 
ranged it,  that  we  had  so  long  a  time  freely  to  ex- 
hort one  another.  Many  people  from  the  town 
came  to  see  and  hear  us ;  but  at  last  no  one  was 
permitted  any  longer  to  come  to  us  in  the  room. 

We  were  then  examined  by  the  high  bailiff  of 
the  province  of  Aelst  concerning  our  faith,  which 
we  freely  confessed  to  him.  We  thought  that  we 
should  be  conducted  to  Aelst,  but  because  the 
bailiff  of  Ghent  had  put  us  into  the  wagon  when 
we  were  apprehended,  in  order  to  take  us  to 
Ghent,  therefore  we  had  to  be  taken  altogether  to 
Ghent.  And  the  traitor  who  had  betrayed  us 
was  apprehended  with  us,  that  we  might  not  notice 
it.  They  purposely  put  us  into  another  room, 
which  grieved  us.  He  was  thereby  prevented 
being  with  us,  and  we  were  ignorant  that  he  was 
our  betrayer.  He  was  likewise  taken  in  the  wagon 
to  the  prison  in  Ghent,  and  there  we  first  came  to 
know  that  he  had  betrayed  us.  When  we  were 
brought  out  of  the  castle  to  be  taken  to  the  town, 
there  were  many  people  who  had  come  from  the 
town  to  see  us.  My  brother's  wife  was  at  that 
time  apprehended,  she  was  also  a  sister,  because 
she  had  spoken  to  me.     She  was  placed  in  the 


82  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

wagon,  and  likewise  anotlier  person,  a  man,  who 
wished  us  happiness.  We  spoke  freely  to  the  peo- 
ple who  were  come  to  us,  how  they  must  all  be 
made  a  prey  who  would  depart  from  evil  and  follow 
Christ.  Many  of  the  people  would  willingly  have 
spoken  to  us,  but  they  durst  not  on  account  of  the 
wicked  magistrates. 

Thus  were  we  ready,  with  our  ten  companions 
in  bonds,  standing  two  and  two,  and  four  youths  ; 
the  two  others  were  apprehended  because  they  had 
spoken  to  us.  They  brought  us,  filling  two 
wagons,  to  the  town  in  broad  daylight :  and  on 
the  road  they  seized  another  woman,  because  she 
had  said  to  us,  "  God  protect  you."  She  was  like- 
wise placed  in  the  wagon.  But  when  we  came 
into  the  town,  had  they  apprehended  all  who  spake 
to  us,  and  to  whom  we  likewise  called,  speaking 
the  word  of  the  Lord,  they  could  not  have  con- 
veyed them  in  twenty  wagons;  for  the  people 
came  running  quickly  from  all  quarters,  wherever 
we  should  pass  by.  Like  water  running  down 
from  the  hills  and  becoming  a  large  body,  the  peo- 
ple ran  together ;  and  this  lasted  from  one  gate  of 
the  city  to  the  Earl's  castle,  which  stands  at  the 
end  of  the  town,  a  distance  of  an  hour's  walk. 
We  were  then  led  to  the  castle,  and  the  magistrate 
of  the  province  of  Aelst  delivered  us  over  into  the 
hands  of  the  magistrates  of  the  imperial  council. 

We  were  now  separated  from  one  another; 
some  above  into  rooms ;  the  women  likewise  re- 
mained above ;  but  eleven  of  us  were  taken  into 
a  dark  deep  vault.     In  the  vault  were  built  many 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  88 

dark  cells  of  masonry.  There  we  were  all  put, 
three  and  three ;  but  Hansken  and  I  were  placed 
in  the  darkest  of  all,  in  which  was  a  little  dirty 
straw,  as  much  as  might  be  carried  in  one's  lap, 
which  was  our  best  accommodation.  I  said,  "  Me- 
thinks  we  are  with  Jonah  in  the  fish's  belly,  it  is 
so  very  dark;  we  must,  like  Jonah,  cry  unto  the 
Lord,  that  he  may  be  our  comforter  and  deliverer; 
for  we  are  now  deprived  of  all  human  comfort  and 
succor."  At  this  we  were  not  cast  down,  but  praised 
and  thanked  God  that  we  were  permitted  to  suffer 
for  his  name's  sake.  We  likewise  spoke  to  our 
brethren  who  lay  in  the  other  dungeons ;  for  we 
could  plainly  hear  each  other  speak. 

When  we  had  lain  here  three  or  four  days, 
Hansken  and  I  were  both  summoned  before  the 
justices,  where  we  were  examined,  and  questioned 
as  to  the  ground  of  our  faith,  and  when  we  were 
baptized.  The  Lord,  according  to  his  promise, 
then  gave  us  a  mouth  to  speak  boldly,  and  we  re- 
quested to  answer  publicly  from  the  word  of  God. 
But  they  replied  that  they  would  appoint  learned 
men,  who  should  instruct  us ;  and  thus  we  were 
again  conducted  below. 

Shortly  after,  I  was  fetched  up  to  another  cham- 
ber, before  two  councillors  and  a  clerk,  who 
sharply  demanded  of  me  where  I  had  been,  and 
if  I  did  not  well  know  that  I  had  been  banished 
more  than  six  years  ago,  in  Martin  Huereblok's 
time,  and  where  we  had  held  our  assemblies? 
They  knew  all  that  already  ;  for  our  betrayer  had 
told  them.     I  said,  "  Why  do  you  inquire  of  me, 


84  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

who  am  come  from  foreign  lands?" — ^For  I  had 
purposely  avoided  making  inquiries,  that  if  I 
should  be  apprehended,  I  might  not  then  have 
much  to  answer. — "  Why  do  you  ask  so  sharply  ? 
have  you  not  shed  enough  innocent  blood  ?  do  you 
still  thirst  for  more  ?  Inquire  as  vigorously  as  you 
will,  it  shall  be  inquired  of  you  again  by  the  righte- 
ous Judge,  unless  you  repent." 

They  then  asked  me  still  more,  and  adjured  me 
by  my  baptism  that  I  should  inform  them,  "  for 
we  know,"  said  they,  ^'  that  your  people  do  not  lie, 
therefore  answer  us."  I  said,  "You  knowing  that 
we  do  not  lie  is  to  us  a  token  of  salvation,  and  to 
you  of  perdition,  since  ye  put  such  to  death ;  but 
your  adjurations  have  no  power  against  the  truth." 
All  I  said  was  written  down,  and  they  threatened 
to  torture  me,  unless  I  would  tell  them  the  whole. 
I  said,  that  "what  I  did  not  know,  I  could  not 
tell;"  bat  they  thus  harassed  me  a  long  time.  I 
was  then  again  conducted  below.  They  dealt  in 
the  same  manner  with  all  our  friends,  one  after 
the  other,  alone. 

On  a  Saturday  I  was  again  fetched  up  into  the 
same  chamber.  There  were  then  present  four 
monks.  The  superior  of  the  Cordeliers,  with 
another;  and  the  father  of  the  Jacobins,  with 
another.  With  me  came  a  young  brother  who 
had  not  yet  received  baptism,  but  stood  ready. 

When  I  was  seated  and  had  asked  what  they 
desired,  they  said,  that  they  were  appointed  by 
the  magistrate  to  instruct  us,  and  to  converse  with 
us  on  the  ground  and  articles  of  faith.     I  then 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  85 

answered,  that  I  was  ready  to  be  instructed  from 
the  word  of  God,  and  desired  to  enter  into  con- 
versation on  the  grounds  and  articles  of  faith, 
and  that  publicly,  in  the  presence  of  the  judges 
who  were  to  pass  sentence  upon  us,  and  in  the 
hearing  of  our  brethren  and  sisters,  who  were 
prisoners  with  us. 

Answer. — That  they  will  not  be  willing  to 
grant. 

Hans,  of  Overbam. — Well,  they  can  do  then  as 
they  please;  but  we  will  not  dispute  thus  alone 
and  in  secret,  that  our  words  may  not  be  wrested 
behind  our  backs. 

Answer. — We  will  not  wrest  your  words. 

Hans. — 'No  ?     We  know  you  well.' 

Question. — What  do  you  know  of  us  ?  What 
harm  have  we  done  you  ?  Tell  us  what  harm  you 
know  of  us. 

Hans. — If  you  will  know  it ;  I  consider  you  to 
be  false  pi^ophets  and  deceivers. 

We  then  fell  into  a  dispute  about  their  show  of 
spiritual  sanctity,  and  the  command  of  the  Pope 
respecting  the  purity  of  the  priests  and  monks, 
and  why  they  were  called  spiritual,  and  the  others 
secular,  seeing  they  ought  all  to  be  spiritual  per- 
sons. Then  thinking  that  hereby  no  progress  was 
made,  they  said,  "  Let  us  dispute  concerning  the 
articles  of  faith."  On  which  I  said,  "Well,  so  I 
proposed."  They  said,  they  would  inform  the  ma- 
gistrates. And  thus  we  separated,  after  having 
disputed  together  for  two  hours. 

Two  days  after  this,  Hansken  anjd-  myself  were 

IfUHirERSITTl 


86  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

called  before  the  Council.  The  four  monks  were 
present,  and  proposed  a  discussion.  I  then  said 
to  the  Council,  "  Gentlemen,  I  ask  you  in  whose 
house  we  are  ?     In  one  of  justice  or  of  violence  V 

Answer. — In  one  of  justice. 

Hans. — Grod  grant  it  may  be  so;  but,  gentle- 
men, of  what  do  you  accuse  us,  that  you  have  ap- 
prehended and  confined  us  as  thieves  and  mur- 
derers ?  Have  we  defrauded  any  one  ?  or  do  you 
lay  to  our  charge  assault  or  murder,  or  any  vil- 
lany  ? 

Answer. — ^IsTo;  we  know  nothing  of  the  kind 
against  you. 

Hans. — Well,  gentlemen;  why  then  have  you 
apprehended  nis  ? 

Answer. — That  your  accusers  will  tell  you. 

Hans. — Are  you  then  our  accusers  ? 

*  Answer. — 'No;  we  are  your  judges. 

I  then  said  to  the  monks,  "Are  you  then  our  ad- 
versaries?'* 

Answer. — No. 

Hans. — ^Well ;  if  no  one  is  our  accuser,  why  are 
we  prisoners?  Then  one  of  the  Council  said, 
"  The  Emperor  is  your  accuser.'' 

Hans. — ^We  have  done  nothing  against  his  Im- 
perial Majesty.  We  will  obey  him,  according  to 
the  power  he  has  received  from  God,  and  observe 
all  his  ordinances  as  far  as  in  our  power,  consist- 
ently with  the  truth. 

Councillor. — You  have  held  assemblies  of  this 
new  doctrine,  and  the  Emperor  has  forbidden  such 
to  be  holden. 


HANS,    OF   OVERDAM.  87 

Hans. — It  is  not  given  him  of  God  to  make  snch 
laws ;  therein  he  exceeds  the  power  granted  him 
of  God.  In  this  matter  we  know  him  not  as  a 
ruler ;  for  the  salvation  of  our  souls  is  dearer  to 
us,  and  we  must  give  our  obedience  to  God. 

The  monks  then  said,  "  We  are  your  opponents 
herein,  for  your  doctrine  is  not  good.  If  it  were, 
you  would  not  preach  in  woods  and  corners,  but 
in  public." 

Hansken  then  said,  "  Allow  us  a  free  place  in 
the  market,  or  in  your  cloisters  and  churches,  and 
then  see  if  we  go  into  the  woods.  But,  no ;  you 
are  afraid  that  men  would  rebuke  you,  and  there- 
fore you  have  so  managed  that  you  cannot  be  re- 
proved, and  have  driven  us  from  town  and  coun- 
try." 

Monks. — ^Alas  !  we  have  not  done  that ;  it  is  the 
Emperor. 

Hansken. — ^You  have  urged  him  to  it*. 

The  Monks. — ^We  have  not. 

The  council  then  began  to  speak  to  us ;  why  we 
were  not  satisfied  with  the  faith  of  our  parents,  and 
with  our  baptism?  We  said,  "We  know  of  no 
infant  baptism  ;  but  of  a  baptism  upon  faith,  which 
God's  word  teacheth  us."  Many  more  words 
passed,  in  which  we  reproved  them  for  wishing  to 
be  judges  in  matters  of  faith,  while  they  under- 
stood not  the  Scriptures.  "  But  if  ye  will  be 
judges,  be  impartial,  and  let  the  business  take  a 
regular  course  and  order,  and  both  parties  be 
equally  dealt  mth ;  and  let  our  brethren  and  sis- 
ters, who  are  brought  as  prisoners  here  with  us,  be 


88  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

also  present,  and  then  one  of  us  will  speak,  whose 
mouth  the  Lord  will  open,  and  the  other  side  shall 
listen  and  be  silent  as  long  as  he  speaks,  and  let 
our  opponents  do  the  same. 

The  Council. — ^We  will  not  let  your  people 
come  together,  we  will  have  you  dispute  here 
alone. 

"We  then  said,  "  Gentlemen,  it  would  be  the 
most  suitable  way,  and  the  discussion  would  pro- 
ceed regularly  through;  otherwise  you  will  have 
to  begin  the  disputation  afresh  with  two  or  three 
only  together." 

Council. — It  does  not  signify,  we  will  not  hav^e 
it  so. 

A  councillor  then  said,  "  They  wish  to  have  the 
others  with  them,  to  mislead  them  still  more; 
therefore  it  must  not  be  permitted." 

Hans,  or  Overdam. — Gentlemen,  you  say  that 
you  are  judges ;  but  we  consider  you  our  oppo- 
nents, for  you  seek  to  weaken  us  in  every  way,  and 
by  violence  and  fraud  to  withdraw  us  and  our 
companions  from  our  belief. 

Answer.— Why  should  we  not  do  so,  in  order 
to  recover  the  erring  to  the  right  way  ? 

Hans. — ^Well,  gentlemen,  then  hear !  Since  we 
see  that  you  are  no  judges,  but  are  our  adversaries, 
and  employ  all  force  and  craft  where  you  can  and 
may,  to  your  own  advantage  and  our  prejudice : — 
first  in  having  taken  from  us,  by  violence,  and  be- 
reft us  of  our  Testament,  in  which  we  find  our 
comfort ;  next,  in  having  us  placed  apart,  some  in 
deep  dark  cellars,  the  others  in  high  chambers; 


89 

and,  thirdly,  in  seeking  now  to  entrap  and  deceive 
us  into  various  discussions,  and  then  to  say  to  our 
brethren,  and  behind  our  backs,  that  you  have 
vanquished  us,  and  then  the  same  of  our  brethren 
and  sisters  to  us : — ^therefore,  gentlemen,  we  will 
not  dispute  here  alone,  unless  our  brethren  and  sis- 
ters be  present. 

When  they  heard  that  their  design  did  not  suc- 
ceed according  to  their  mind,  they  became  very 
indignant,  and  the  monks  likewise.  We  saw  well 
what  their  object  was,  and  that  what  they  were 
driving  at  was  all  knavery ;  for  should  it  be  proved 
from  the  holy  Scriptures  that  they  were  wrong  in 
any  point,  yet  they  would  not  confess  it,  but  ex- 
cuse themselves  by  pleading  the  Emperor  and  his 
mandate ;  and  the  monks  the  ancient  customs  of 
the  Eomish  church,  and  the  great  number  of 
fathers ;  and  when  proof  was  brought  from  the 
Scriptures  to  the  contrary,  it  was  as  before,  to  no 
purpose,  but  like  speaking  into  the  air. 

We  then  said,  "  Well,  gentlemen,  will  you  not 
then  permit  us  to  dispute  in  a  reasonable  and  or- 
derly manner,  as  we  have  desired?"  Their  answer 
was,  "]N"o."  "Well  then,"  said  we,  "you  know  the 
grounds  of  our  faith,  which  we  have  freely  con- 
fessed to  you ;  you  can  now  do  with  us  what  you 
please,  so  far  as  God  permits  you ;  but  consider 
well  what  you  do,  for  there  is  another  judge  above 
you.  May  the  Lord  open  the  eyes  of  your  under- 
standing, that  you  may  see  how  lamentably  you 
are  misled  and  deceived  by  the  false  prophets 
in  fighting  against  God  and  the  Lamb ;  it  will 
8* 


90  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

bring  upon  you  a  heavy  judgement,  unless  you 
repent." 

"We  were  then  again  led  away,  not  being  willing 
to  dispute  further.  For  we  had  agreed  together  to 
adopt  this  course  when  we  were  yet  in  the  castle 
outside  the  town,  in  order  that  they  might  not 
take  advantage  of  the  simple  in  the  disputation. 
In  this  way  they  would  be  prevented  from  making 
any  one  believe  they  had  obtained  the  victory,  as 
all  well  knew  there  would  be  no  disputation  unless 
the  rest  were  there  also,  and  then  the  disputation 
would  be  to  the  comfort  and  admonition  of  the 
brethren  and  sisters  who  heard  it.  For  as  we  saw 
that  their  own  advantage  was  their  only  object, 
we  likewise  would  not  neglect  our  own,  for  we 
knew  well  that  it  was  necessary. 

When  they  perceived  that  they  had  failed  of 
their  object,  they  took  counsel,  and  adopted  ano- 
ther plan.  They  placed  one  of  the  council  and 
two  monks,  (a  grey  and  a  black,)  in  a  chamber, 
into  which  each  brother  or  sister  were  brought  to 
dispute  or  defend  the  reasons  of  their  faith  with 
the  monks.  But  they  said  that  they  would  not 
dispute  alone  in  the  chamber,  but  in  public,  and 
with  the  rest  before  the  council.  Then  said  they, 
^^We  adjure  you  by  your  faith  and  baptism  that 
you  dispute  here."  The  brother  said,  "My  faith 
and  baptism  I  know  and  acknowledge,  but  with 
your  adjuration  I  have  nothing  to  do.  Let  us 
come  together,  that  is  just  our  desire,  in  order  to 
dispute  with  you  publicly,  but  not  thus  in  a  cham- 
ber alone."     They  then   sent  for  another,  and  so 


HANS,    OF    OVEHDAM.  91 

on  until  they  had  the  whole  before  them,  and  not 
one  would,  in  such  a  way,  engage  in  disputation. 

I  was  then  called  alone  into  a  chamber  where 
were  one  of  the  council  and  two  monks,  who  like- 
wise began  to  adjure  me.  I  then  said,  "What 
would  you  adjure  me  to  do  ?  To  cast  roses  before 
dogs,  and  pearls  before  swine,  to  be  trodden  under 
foot  ?  ISTo,  that  the  Lord  has  forbidden  me  to  do. 
ISTo,  I  esteem  God's  word  too  highly  to  let  that 
light  shine  here  in  vain,  where  no  one  is  enlight- 
ened, but  which  is  traduced  and  contemned  as  it 
is  by  you  when  the  truth  is  spoken."  They  then 
adjured  me  still  more  solemnly.  "Whereupon  I  said, 
"  To  what  purpose  is  so  much  adjuring  ?  I  do  not 
regard  it ;  for  it  is  the  manner  of  wizards  who 
swear  against  the  truth.  But  I  now  see  plainly  by 
what  means  the  souls  of  our  two  brethren  and  our 
sister  were  seduced  and  murdered.  Through 
your  swearing  and  enchantment  they  were  not  on 
the  guard  against  the  devil's  subtlety,  and  had 
not  the  gift  of  disputation. 

Then  said  the  superior,  "You  have  given  a 
challenge  in  your  letter  to  hold  a  public  disputa- 
tion; wherefore  are  you  afraid  to  dispute  now?" 

Hans,  of  Overdam. — You  monk,  I  desire  with 
all  my  heart  to  defend  my  faith  in  public  by  God's 
word,  before  all  men ;  but  your  cowl  would  trem- 
ble if  you  had  to  dispute  with  me  before  the  flames, 
and  the  magistrate  were  not  your  protector. 

The  Councillor: — lS[o;  we  have  no  inclination 
to  let  you  dispute  in  public ;  you  are  in  our  hands. 

Hans. — I  wished  it  before  I  knew  that  I  should 


92  BAPTIST   MAETYES. 

fall  into  your  hands  ;  but  I  see  plainly  that  we  are 
in  the  eagle's  talons,  and  whoever  is  there  cannot 
escape ;  he  must  there  lose  either  soul  or  body. 

CouNCiLLOE. — ^Who  is  the  eagle  ?  the  Emperor  ? 

Hans. — 'So,  It  is  the  Roman  empire  or  power. 
Read  the  letter  I  wrote  to  you,  that  will  give  you 
an  answer. 

Many  other  words  passed  between  us.  The 
monks  were  wroth  with  me,  and  began  to  speak 
great  swelling  words.  I  then  said  that  Paul  had 
rightly  prophesied  of  them,  that  they  were  blas- 
phemers, fierce  and  puffed  up.  Brother  Jan  de 
Crook  then  became  so  angry,  that  he  began  to  ex- 
claim, **=  Simpletons  !  simpletons!  Heretics!  ye 
are  heretics!" 

Hans. — See!  is  not  that  a  fine  teacher?  Paul 
says  that  a  bishop  must  not  strive,  nor  be  angry. 
The  councillor  was  himself  ashamed  of  the  monk, 
and  admonished  him  to  be  silent. 

At  another  time  after,  there  came  two  secular 
priests.  Master  Willem,  of  Meuwen-land,  and  the 
parish  priest  of  St.  Michael's.  I  asked  them  what 
they  desired.  They  said,  ''We  are  come  for  your 
soul's  good."  This  time  I  kept  myself  as  close  as 
possible,  hoping  that  we  might  dispute  publicly 
before  the  Council,  they  having  told  me  they 
would  do  their  best  thereto.  "When  I  heard  that 
it  might  not  be,  and  they  came  a  second  time  to 
me  with  a  clerk,  I  thought  we  must  take  another 
course  with  these  than  we  did  last  time.  I  then 
asked,  "  What  then  do  you  wish  ?" 


HANS,    OF    OVERDAM.  93 

Answer. — We  wish  you  to  allow  yourself  to  be 
instructed,  for  we  seek  your  soul.  . 

Hans. — ^Are  you  then  so  diligent  in  seeking 
souls  ? 

Answer. — ^Tes. 

Hans. — ^Well,  go  then  into  the  town,  into  every- 
place, to  drunkards,  whoremasters,  swearers,  re- 
vilers,  the  covetous,  the  proud,  idolaters,  tipplers, 
gluttons,  and  murderers,  to  them  that  shed  inno- 
cent blood.  These  are  all  your  brethren ;  go  and 
seek  their  souls ;  mine,  Christ  has  found. 

Answer. — We  admonish  them,  and  have  de- 
livered our  souls. 

Hans. — That  is  not  enough ;  you  should  go  and  . 
reprove  them,  and  if  they  will  not  hear  you,  bring 
them  before  the  church,  and  rebuke  them  pub- 
licly. If  they  then  will  not  hear,  cast  them  out  of 
the  church,  and  let  them  be  to  you  as  heathens 
and  publicans,  as  Christ  teaches,  and  Paul  to  the 
Corinthians.  Eebuke  also  your  judges  who  em- 
ploy force  and  injustice,  yea,  who  spill  and  shed 
innocent  blood. 

A  priest  then  said,  "  Should  we  go  and  reprove 
our  superiors  V  I  asked,  if  God  was  a  respecter 
of  persons  ? 

Answer. — 'No. 

Hans. — ^Will  you  be  God's  servants,  and  respect 
the  persons  of  men  ? 

Answer. — That  would  make  an  uproar  in  the 
town,  and  they  would  put  us  to  death. 

Hans. — ^Do  you  thus  suffer  for  righteousness 
sake? 


94  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

But  metliouglit  they  had  no  great  desire  to  suf- 
fer in  such  a  cause.  In  short,  we  discoursed  much 
on  excommunication ;  that  if  the  words  of  Christ 
and  Paul  should  be  followed,  then  the  Pope,  pre- 
lates, emperor,  and  king,  yea  themselves  and  their 
whole  company  would  be  shut  out,  and  the  num- 
ber become  extremely  small.  I  then  said  to  them, 
that  their  house  was  on  fire,  kindled  by  the  fire  of 
hell,  which  they  should  first  quench  before  they 
came  to  see  if  our  house  was  in  danger  of  fire. 
They  then  went  away,  and  one  of  the  priests  came 
no  more  again.  With  Master  Antonis,  of  Hille,  I 
discoursed  in  like  manner,  who  troubled  the 
others ;  but  he  let  me  be  in  peace. 

Herewith,  I  commend  my  dear  brethren  and 
sisters  in  the  Lord  to  the  hands  of  Almighty  God 
the  Father,  through  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord. 
Amen. 

"Written  in  prison  for  the  testimony  of  Christ. 
In  this  dark  dungeon  I  have  lain  a  month.  I 
now  lie  in  a  deep  round  dungeon,  which  is  some- 
what lighter,  and  in  which  I  have  written  this  let- 
ter. I  hope  this  week  to  make  my  offering,  if  it 
please  the  Lord,  with  those  whom  the  Lord  has 
thereto  appointed.  For  if  it  do  not  take  place 
this  week,  it  will  be  two  months  longer,  as  their 
sittings  are  only  once  in  six  weeks.  Know  that 
our  brethren  and  sisters  are  comfortable  and  of 
good  courage,  through  the  mercy  of  the  Lord. 
God  be  praised. 

I  pray  you  by  the  brotherly  love  you  bear  me, 
to  forward  this  letter  to  Friesland,  particularly  to 


HANSj    OF    OVERDAM.  95 

Embdenland,  this  letter  itself,  as  speedily  as  you 
can.  You  may  copy  it ;  but  be  expeditioas.  That 
I  request  as  a  friend ;  and  let  it  be  taken  care  of, 
so  that  it  be  not  torn  or  soiled. 

The  brethren  who  are  lying  with  me  in  the 
vault  greet  you  unitedly,  wishing  you  peace  in  the 
Lord.  We  pray  daily  for  you.  Do  the  same  like- 
wise for  us.  "Walk  in  peace  in  the  Lord;  so  shall 
it  be  well  with  you.  When  this  letter  has  been 
read,  forward  it  to  Antwerp,  that  it  may  reach  the 
church  at  Embden,  and  be  read  by  every  one.  This 
I  desire  of  you,  my  dear  brethren,  by  the  brotherly 
love  which  you  bear  towards  me. 

The  first  volume  of  TJnderhiU's  edition  of  the 
'^  Butch  Marty rology^''  contains  the  very  long  and 
forcible  letter  addressed  by  this  excellent  man  to 
the  judges  and  council  of  Ghent,  the  day  before 
he  was  apprehended,  to  which  reference  has  already 
been  made.  It  is  full  of  Scriptural  truth,  and 
manifests  great  holy  courage  in  stating  it,  but  is 
too  long  for  insertion  in  our  volume.  Hans,  of 
Overdam,  and  Hans  Keeskooper  were  sentenced  to 
death.  When  they  were  condemned,  the  pro- 
cureur-general  said,  "  The  reason  of  your  being 
condemned  as  heretics  is  this: — ^that  various 
learned  persons  have  disputed  with  you,  and  you 
have  not  suffered  yourselves  to  be  instructed." 

Hans,  of  Overdam. — Gentlemen,  had  we  been 
allowed  to  dispute  in  public,  it  would  soon  have 
been  seen  what  kind  of  learned  persons  those  were. 

The  Procureur  General. — It  is  too  late  now. 
It  is  too  late  now. 


96  BAPTIST    MARTYKS. 

Hans,  of  Oveedam. — ^Yes,  yes,  it  is  now  too 
late. 

They  were  then  both  taken  away,  and  departed 
with  a  smihng  countenance. 

Hans  Keeskooper  had  agreed  with  Hans,  of 
Overdam,  that  while  he  drew  oft'  his  hose  on  the 
scaffold,  Hans,  of  Overdam,  should  speak  to  the 
people.  This  was  done.  The  executioner  being 
about  to  assist  Hansken,  [Hans  Keeskooper,]  he 
wished  to  do  it  alone,  that  Hans,  of  Overdam, 
might  speak  the  longer  to  the  people.  This  being 
done,  they  were  each  fastened  to  a  stake,  and  pre- 
sented their  bodies  a  sacrifice  to  God. 


JAQUES  DOSIE. 


During  the  sixteenth  century,  the  exact  date  we 
have  not  been  able  to  ascertain,  though  it  is  highly 
probable  that  it  was  in  1560,  Jaques  Dosie,  (pro- 
bably a  Fleming  who  had  fled  to  Priesland  to  es- 
cape the  intolerant  edict  of  the  emperor,  by  which 
a  modified,  form  of  the  Inquisition  was  established 
in  the  Netherlands,)  was  apprehended  at  Leeu- 
warden,  the  capital  of  Friesland,  for  the  sake  of  the 
truth  of  the  holy  gospel.  He  is  said  to  have  been 
but  fifteen  years  of  age,  but  God  wonderfully  ex- 
hibited in  him  the  power  of  his  grace,  and  enabled 
him  to  bear  a  noble  testimony  for  the  Lord 
Jesus. 

On  one  occasion,  when  the  governor  of  Friesland 
and  his  lady,  with  many  other  gentlemen  and 
ladies,  were  assembled  at  Leeuwarden,  they  had 
this  Jaques  brought  before  them,  and  spoke  with 
him,  inquiring  if  he  was  tainted  with  any  heresy. 
Fully  did  he  realize  that  God  gave  him  "  a  mouth 
and  wisdom  which  the  enemies  could  not  gainsay 
or  resist." 

After  a  few  words,  the  governor  of  Friesland^ 
in  consequence  of  the  people's  waiting  for  him,  took 
his  leave ;  but  his  lady,  as  it  appears,  being  deeply 
interested,  spoke  with  him,  and  asked  him  where- 
fore he,  being  yet  so  young,  was  thus  rigorously 
confined  and  bound. 

9  (97) 


98  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Jaques  answered,  ^'This  has  happened  only  be- 
cause I  believe  in  Christ,  and  depend  on  him 
alone,  and  will  by  no  means  forsake  him." 

The  lady  asked  him,  "  Are  you  not  one  of  the 
people  who  rebaptize  themselves,  and  do  so  much 
evil  in  our  country,  exciting  uproar,  running  to- 
gether, and  who  say  that  for  their  faith  they  are 
driven  away,  and  boast  of  being  the  church  of 
God;  but  who  are  a  dangerous  set,  and  make 
great  disturbance  among  the  people  ?" 

Jaques. — My  lady,  tumultuous  people  I  know 
none,  and  am  in  no  wise  of  the  number  of  such ; 
but  we  desire  much  rather,  as  the  Scripture  teaches 
us,  to  assist  our  enemies,  and  if  they  are  hungry 
or  thirsty  to  satisfy  them  with  food  and  drink,  and 
in  no  wise  to  resist  them  by  violence  or  to  avenge 
ourselves. 

Some  one  said,  ^'It  would  be  soon  seen,  in  case 
you  had  the  power." 

Jaques. — Oh  no,  my  lady ;  believe  me,  if  we 
were  free  to  oppose  the  wicked  witli  the  outward 
sword,  you  ought  to  know  that  then  seven  men 
could  uot  have  brought  me  here,  and  I  had  es- 
caped out  of  your  hands ;  for  strength  enough 
would  have  been  found. 

Lady. — I  know  that  there  are  sects,  that  are 
very  infamous,  that  kill  people,  and  hold  a  com- 
munity of  goods  and  wives. 

Jaques. — Oh,  no,  madam ;  such  wicked  things  are 
laid  to  our  charge  without  our  fault,  and  people 
seek  occasion  thereby  to  persecute  us ;  but  we  must 
suffer  and  bear  all  such  things  with  patience. 


JAQUES    DOSIE.  99 

Lady. — ^Were  tliey  not  your  people  who  dis- 
gracefully and  shamefully  took  up  the  sword 
against  the  magistrates  at  Amsterdam  and  Mun- 
ster  ? 

Jaques. — Oh,  no,  madam;  those  persons  greatly 
erred.  But  we  consider  it  a  devilish  doctrine  to 
resist  the  magistrates  by  the  outward  sword  and 
violence.  We  would  much  rather  suffer  persecu- 
tion and  death  at  their  hands,  and  whatever  is  ap- 
pointed us  to  suffer. 

Lady. — It  is,  however,  laid  to  your  charge,  and 
they  do  very  ill  who  excite  uproar ;  but  I  sincerely 
believe  what  you  say  hereupon. 

Jaques. — My  lady ;  do  we  not  read  much  of  the 
same  kind,  how  that  wicked  men  spoke  untruly 
of  the  Apostles  themselves,  and  the  whole  Chris- 
tian multitude,  and  sought  by  many  evil  charges 
to  stir  up  the  higher  powers  to  vengeance  against 
them  ?  yet  it  was  all  falsehood. 

Lady. — ^Do  you  not  think  that  all  are  lost  who 
are  not  baptized  in  your  way? 

Jaques. — Oh,  no,  madam ;  judgment  belongs  to 
God  alone,  who  will  reward  every  man  according 
to  his  works,  as  plainly  appears  in  many  places  of 
the  holy  Scriptures.  Besides,  water  has  no  power 
to  cleanse  us  from  sin,  as  Peter  says ;  but  is  only 
a  token  of  obedience. 

Lady. — ^When  you  have  been  baptized,  tell  me, 
can  you  then  still  sin  ? 

Jaques. — ^Yes,  indeed,  madam ;  for  that  clearly 
appears  fi^om  Paul's  words;  for  we  are  encom- 
passed still  with  a  weak  sinful  body,  and  offend  in 


100  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

many  things.  But  we  must  continually  crucify 
and  put  the  same  to  death,  and  not  do  or  fulfill 
the  works  of  the  flesh,  otherwise  we  should,  by 
the  righteousness  of  God,  be  consigned  to  ever- 
lasting death. 

Lady. — In  what  then  do  you  differ  from  the  In- 
quisitor ?  let  me  hear  now. 

Jaques. — Madam;  in  that  I  will  in  nowise  re- 
ceive his  doctrine,  except  he  first  clearly  show  me 
that  it  every  way  agrees  with  God's  word ;  other- 
wise he  labors  in  vain.  My  faith  is  founded  alone 
upon  the  pure  word  of  God.  Concerning  the  use 
of  infant  baptism,  we  speak  with  reason  against  it, 
as  being  no  command  of  Almighty  God ;  but  much 
rather  an  invention  of  men,  considering  that  the 
young  children  have  no  knowledge  or  discernment 
about  whatever  is  required  and  contained  in  the 
baptismal  service.  But  Christ,  from  affection  to 
such  innocents,  without  their  seeking  it  them- 
selves, graciously  promised  them  the  kingdom  of 
God.  Besides  this,  madam,  I  think  the  papacy 
chargeable  with  many  other  errors ;  for  they  seek 
to  bring  Christ  into  the  bread,  or  to  change  the 
bread  itself  into  his  flesh  and  blood.  This  we  can 
by  no  means  believe ;  but  consider  it  as  a  gross 
error  and  absurdity.  But  we  believe  that  Christ 
is  truly  ascended  into  heaven,  and  sits  at  the  right 
hand  of  the  Father.  Believing  this,  we  neither 
believe  nor  hold  any  salvation  to  be  in  their  meal, 
or  their  mass,  or  purgatory,  or  their  prayers  for  the 
dead,  or  in  any  such  inventions  of  men,  which 
abound  among  them,  none  of  which  are  known  in 


JAQUES    DOSIE.  101 

the  sacred  Scriptures,  but  are  excluded  therefrom. 
But  in  opposition  thereto,  we  invoke  God,  and 
seek  our  salvation  in  him,  and  not  in  any  crea- 
ture; that  we  may. not  rob  God  of  the  honor  due 
to  him,  by  giving  the  same  to  any  of  the  creatures 
he  has  made. 

The  Provincial  being  now  come,  he  began  to 
speak,  saying,  "  Will  you  not  believe  in  the  sacra- 
ment which  Christ  himself  instituted  ?" 

Jaques. — Sir,  Paul  says,  that  the  bread  is  broken 
in  remembrance  of  Him,  and  the  cup  of  blessing 
is  a  communion  of  the  blood  of  Christ. 

Herewith  the  Provincial  ended  his  discourse. 

Lady. — I  consider  the  worst  in  you  to  be,  your 
refusal  to  baptize  the  children ;  for  all  Germany, 
and  every  kingdom,  regard  your  conduct  as 
heresy. 

Jaques. — Madam,  such  is  indeed  the  truth,  that 
we  are  everywhere  contemned,  and  are,  like  the 
apostolic  band,  spoken  against  in  all  the  world ; 
but  do  not  think  that  all  such  will  therefore  in  the 
last  day  be  lost. 

Lady. — My  dear  child,  consider ;  I  beg  you  to 
come  over  to  our  side,  and  repent ;  you  will  then 
be  freed  from  this  trouble,  and  I  again  fully  pro- 
mise to  procure  your  entire  deliverance  and  free- 
dom. 

Jaques. — Madam,  I  thank  you  heartily  for  the 
afiection  and  kind  disposition  you  have  towards 
me;  but  I  will  not  exchange  my  faith  to  please 
any  mortal  being,  unless  it  is  proved  from  the 
Scripture  that  I  haxe  erred.  That  I  might  be  the 
9* 


102  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

friend  of  God,  I  have  given  myself  over  entirely  to 
him,  in  whom  I  hope  to  live  and  die. 

Lady. — My  son,  look  at  all  this  multitude  of 
people.  I  compassionate  you,  and  earnestly  be- 
seech you  to  repent  of  your  baptism,  and  not  to 
continue  thus  hardened.  Should  you,  so  young  a 
child,  die  in  consequence,  it  would  be  a  heavy 
cross  to  my  heart.  Take  the  course  then  by  which 
you  may  again  be  at  liberty  and  return  to  your 
home. 

Jaques. — Madam,  in  my  baptism  I  can  find 
nothing  criminal,  considering  that  herein  I  have 
followed  not  my  own  will,  but  the  institution  of 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  Could  I  have  found 
another  and  better  way  to  the  kingdom  of  God, 
it  would  not  have  taken  place ;  for  I  was  desirous 
with  my  whole  heart  to  seek  the  Lord  my  God. 

Lady. — Could  they  then  all  err,  so  many  learned 
men,  who  were  before  you  ?  Can  you  dare  to  be 
thus  presumptuous  ? 

Jaques. — Madam,  in  Israel  there  were  as  many 
as  four  hundred  prophets  against  one  Micaiah, 
who  alone  spoke  the  truth,  and  was  fed  on  bread 
and  water ;  but  king  Ahab  found  it  to  be  true  too 
late  in  his  distress. 

Lady. — I  find  many  good  qualities  in  you  ;  but 
your  greatest  error  I  hold  to  be  in  your  baptism. 
That  I  do  not  think  to  be  of  God. 

This  lady  frequently  required  that  Jaques  should 
be  brought  before  her ;  but  though  he  was  young 
in  years,  he  was  highly  intelligent  xn  the  know- 
ledge of  the  Saviour,  and  firmly  settled  on  the 


JAQUES    DOSIE.  103 

foundation  stone,  Jesus  Christ ;  so  that  he  va- 
liantly warded  oiF,  with  the  sword  of  the  Spirit, 
which  is  the  word  of  God,  all  the  crafty  attacks  of 
Satan,  whether  by  cruel  threatenings,  or  the  fair 
promises  of  the  men  of  this  world.  He  could  by 
no  means  be  brought  to  deny  Christ ;  and  so  was 
condemned  by  rulers  of  the  darkness  of  earth  to 
pass  from  life  to  death.  He  witnessed  a  good  con- 
fession in  life  before  many  witnesses,  and  proved 
the  sincerity  of  his  faith  in  the  truth  by  suffering 
a  bloody  and  cruel  death;  thus  obtaining  the 
crown  of  martyrdom,  and  by  the  infinite  grace  of 
God,  we  doubt  not,  the  crown  of  everlasting  glory. 


AN  OLD  MAN  IN  HOLLAND. 


Bkandt,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Reformation  in 
the  Low  Countries^''  gives  a  fine  illustration  of  Bap- 
tist patience  and  boldness  in  the  face  of  death, 
which  it  would  be  unjust  to  withhold  from  the 
readers  of  this  volume. 

The  scene  was  in  Holland,  the  period  preceded 
the  year  1551.  An  old  man  of  seventy-five  was 
brought  before  the  bloody  tribunal;  his  hair  was 
white,  his  body  thin  with  age,  and  his  manners, 
which  sprung  from  a  heart  fearing  God,  were  irre- 
proachable. He  had  been  baptized  in  his  old  age, 
and  then  had  found,  though  late,  a  home  in  the 
church.  Knowing  well  the  character  of  those 
before  whom  he  stands,  he  feels  himself  as  a  sheep 
bound  for  the  slaughter  house,  and,  surrounded 
by  a  number  of  the  burghers,  he  calmly  awaits  the 
approach  of  the  criminal  magistrate  to  pronounce 
the  sentence  of  death. 

An  oflnlcer  speaks  to  him.  "  Good  father,  why  do 
you  continue  thus  obstinately  in  your  cursed  error, 
do  you  think  there  is  such  a  place  as  hell?" 

Old  Man. — Sir,  I  believe  in  a  hell,  most  cer- 
tainly; but  I  know  nothing  of  the  errors  you 
mention. 

Another. — ^Yes,  you  are  in  an  error,  and  in  so 
dreadful  a  one,  that  if  you  die  in  it  you  will  be 
damned  for  ever. 
(104) 


AN   OLD    MAN    IN   HOLLAND.  105 

Old  Man. — Are  you  sure  of  that  ? 

Officer. — ^Yes,  it  is  as  sure  as  anything  in  the 
world. 

Old  Man. — If  it  is  so,  then  are  ye  murderers  of 
my  soul. 

There  was  deep  silence  in  the  multitude  as  the 
old  man  thus  discoursed ;  their  attention  became 
more  earnest,  and  the  oflBlcer,  half  enraged,  and 
ashamed,  loudly  continued, — 

Officer. — What  do  you  say,  you  impertinent 
fellow  ?     Are  we  the  murderers  of  your  soul  ? 

Old  Man. — ^Do  not  be  angry,  sir,  at  the  sound 
of  truth.  You  yourself  know  that  faith  is  the  gift 
of  God,  that  neither  I  nor  any  other  can  extort 
this  saving  gift  out  of  God's  hands ;  that  God  be- 
stows his  gifts  on  one  man  early,  on  another  late, 
just  as  he  called  the  husbandmen  into  the  vine- 
yard. Suppose  now  that  I  had  not  yet  received 
this  gift,  as  you  have,  ought  you  to  punish  me  for 
this  misfortune  ?  Might  not  God,  in  case  you  suf- 
fered me  to  live,  impart  to  me,  as  well  as  to  you, 
this  excellent  gift  in  a  week,  a  month,  a  year? 
If  then  you  hinder  me  from  sharing  therein,  by 
depriving  me  of  this  time  of  grace,  what  are  you 
otherwise  but  murderers  of  my  soul  ? 

The  officer  of  justice  hurried  him  away,  not- 
withstanding the  murmurs  of  the  people,  whose 
hearts  were  moved  by  his  courage  and  his  words. 
His  condemnation  did  not  linger,  neither  did  the 
sun  reach  his  meridian  till  the  glory  of  the  Lamb 
burst  upon  the  vision  of  his  martyred  servant.  lie 
was  beheaded  for  his  testimony  to  Christ. 


CHAPTER  II. 


HUSBANDS     AND     WIVES     MARTYRED     FOR     CHRIST     ON     THE     CON- 
TINENT  OF   EUROPE. 


BALTHAZAR  HUBMEYER  AND  HIS  WIFE. 


In  the  time  of  Zuingle  lived  the  famous  Bal- 
thazar HuBMEYER,  of  Friedburgh,  a  learned  and 
eloquent  man,  who,  while  yet  among  the  Catholics, 
had  been  called  a  Doctor  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

He  was  first  a  reader  and  preacher  at  Ingold- 
stadt,  and  afterwards  removed  to  Eegensburg, 
where  he  preached  with  great  power.  By  the 
illuminations  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  he  was  so  con- 
vinced of  the  abominations  of  Popery,  that,  fol- 
lowing the  counsel  of  God,  he  separated  himself 
from  it.  He  afterwards  rejected,  with  other  errors, 
their  self-invented  infant  baptism,  and  taught  with 
all  possible  zeal  the  baptism  of  believers  according 
to  the  command  of  Christ.  But  the  dark  world 
could  not  bear  the  light  of  the  holy  gospel,  and 
the  testimony  thus  given  to  their  false  faith  and 
evil  works ;  therefore  Hubmeyer,  with  many  others, 
was  hated  and  persecuted  by  the  world. 

After  many  trials,  banishments,  and  imprison- 
ments, he  removed  to  Mclasburg,  in  Moravia,  and 
was  there,  together  with  his  wife,  apprehended, 
(106) 


BALTHAZAR   IIUBMEYER    AND   WIFE.  107 

and  taken  to  Vienna,  in  Austria,  where,  after 
various  trials,  and  long  imprisonment,  endured 
with  great  steadfastness,  he  was  burned  to  ashes, 
and  his  wife  drowned;  both  thus  confirming  by 
their  deaths,  the  faith  they  had  received  from 
God. 

Some  interesting  particulars  of  the  life  and  death 
of  this  excellent  man  may  be  given.  He  was  one 
of  the  earliest  coadjutors  and  intimate  friends  of 
Ziiingle.  lie  was  born  in  Friedburg,  near  Augs- 
burg, in  Bavaria,  not  later  than  the  year  1480,  and 
thence  often  called  Friedburgher,  or,  in  its  Latin- 
ized form,  Pacimontanus.  By  the  Cardinal  de 
Sandoval,  in  his  "Index  of  Prohibited  Books,"  he 
is  ranked  by  name  with  Luther,  Zuingle,  Calvin, 
Schwenckfeld,  standing  fourth  on  the  list  as  a 
principal  leader  in  the  Reformation. 

Beneath  the  shadow  of  the  beautiful  minster  of 
the  High  school  of  Friedburg,  Ilubmeyer  acquired, 
under  the  renowned  controversialist  and  theo- 
logian, Eck,  his  knowledge  of  the  ancient  tongues. 
His  first  intention  was  to  become  a  physician ;  but 
he  soon  exchanged  medicine  for  theology.  Barely 
supplied  with  the  means  of  subsistence,  he  was  for 
a  time  compelled  to  suspend  his  studies,  and  as- 
sume the  office  of  schoolmaster  at  Schaff'hausen. 
The  friendships  he  there  formed  were  continued  to 
a  later  period  of  his  life,  especially  with  an  emi- 
nent physician  of  the  name  of  Adelphus.  In  1511, 
he  graduated  at  Friedburg ;  and  in  the  following 
year,  on  account  of  his  erudition  and  eloquence, 
became  professor  of  Divinity  and  principal  preacher 


108  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

in  the  Maria  Kirk  at  Ingoldstadt,  a  fortified  city 
in  Bavaria,  by  the  appointment  of  that  ancient 
university.  For  three  years  and  five  months  he 
continued  his  eloquent  and  instructive  labors; 
and  by  his  earnest  and  powerful  preaching  revived 
the  decayed  spirit  of  Catholicism. 

His  fame  reached  Regensburg,  the  modern 
Eatisbon,  and  one  of  the  most  ancient  cities  of 
Germany.  Early  in  1516,  he  removed  to  that 
city.  The  inhabitants  flocked  to  the  grand  but 
gloomy  cathedral  to  hear  his  denanciations  of  the 
vices  of  the  times ;  and  the  soft  blue  colored  light 
which  fell  upon  the  waving  mass,  from  windows 
richly  painted,  helped  to  increase  the  superstitious 
awe  and  enthusiasm  which  his  eloquence  inspired. 

The  Jews  were  the  especial  objects  of  his  denun- 
ciations. He  treated  on  the  evils  of  Judaism,  but 
particularly  on  the  damage  received  by  the  entire 
German  nation  from  the  Jewish  usury.  The  en- 
raged senate  sought  from  the  emperor  an  edict  of 
banishment  against  them ;  and  on  the  last  day  of 
February  the  Jews  were  driven  from  the  city,  their 
goods  plundered,  and  their  synagogue,  with  other 
buildings,  levelled  to  the  ground. 

In  its  stead  arose  a  chapel  dedicated  to  Maria 
Formosa,  and  before  the  door  was  set  up  a  wonder- 
working stone  statue  of  the  Virgin!  Pilgrim- 
ages were  made  to  it.  Its  fame  spread  on  every 
side.  The  chronicler  hints  that  the  clergy  were 
not  sparing  of  incantations  and  magical  arts  to 
attract  the  vulgar,  that  they  might  be  enriched 
by  the  liberality  of  the  congregated  multitudes. 


BALTHAZAR    HUBMEYER   AND   WIFE.  109 

Laborers  engaged  at  their  work,  when  they  saw 
the  long  lines  of  people  pass  by — woodmen,  tail- 
ors, and  maidens — to  the  Virgin's  fane,  would 
shoulder  their  axes  and  reaping  hooks,  hasten  to 
join  the  devout  procession,  and  wildly  cast  them- 
selves at  the  feet  of  the  goddess  of  Regensburg. 

To  this  infatuation  Hubmeyer  contributed,  until 
the  noise  of  Luther's  strife  with  Tetzel,  and  of 
Zuingle's  bold  proclamation  of  the  gospel  at  En- 
isidlin,  awoke  his  suspicions,  and  led  him  to  see 
the  errors  of  that  church  which  he  had  so  zealously 
served. 

While  yet  a  Romish  priest,  Hubmeyer  had 
sought  to  revive  the  ancient  spirit  of  religion,  to 
render  the  services  of  his  church  more  intelligible, 
and  to  awaken  the  lost  devotion  of  the  common 
people.  He  appears  to  have  gladly  hailed  the 
dawn  of  better  days.  His  course,  as  a  reformer, 
was  begun  by  translating  the  gospels  and  epistles 
into  the  German  tongue,  and  he  read  the  mass 
in  the  language  of  the  common  people.  He  next 
altered  the  canon  of  the  mass,  and  celebrated  it 
under  both  the  forms  of  bread  and  wine.  He  now 
taught  the  true  doctrine  concerning  it,  that  Christ 
was  not  bodily  present  in  the  bread,  and  that  after 
the  consecration  it  continued  to  be  bread.  His 
hearers,  to  whom  for  two  years  he  had  preached, 
were  directed  to  reverence  the  blessed  Virgin  and 
the  saints  no  more,  and  the  use  of  the  "  Ave 
Maria"  was  abolished.  Fasts  were  set  aside,  and  per- 
mission given  to  eat  meats  without  distinction.  He 
laid  aside  the  chalice  and  the  robes  worn  at  mass, 

10 


110  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

and  sold  the  sacred  utensils.  He  clothed  himself 
in  a  coat  made  of  a  black  camlet  priest's  cloak.  lie 
lifted  up  his  voice  against  images  in  churches, 
broke  some  into  pieces  and  burnt  them,  and 
called  their  worship  idolatry.  It  was  at  a  later  period 
that  he  rejected  the  baptism  of  infants. 

Thus  changed  in  opinion,  he  left  Eegensburg, 
and  for  a  time  abode  at  Schaffhausen.  About  the 
year  1519,  he  received  the  appointment  of  preacher 
at  Waldshut.  There  he  investigated  with  diligence 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  led  many  of  the  people 
to  abandon  the  superstitions  of  liome.  He  also 
formed  an  intimacy  with  Erasmus,  who  then  re- 
sided at  Basle.  In  a  letter  to  his  friend,  the 
physician,  John  Adelphus,  of  Schaifhausen,  June 
23,  1522,  he  testifies  of  this  learned  man,  that  he 
spoke  boldly  but  wrote  timidly. 

Meanwhile,  Hubmeyer's  return  to  Regensburg 
was  longed  for  by  many  of  his  former  hearers ; 
and  in  1522,  he  returned  for  a  year  to  minister 
among  them  as  a  teacher  of  the  doctrines  of  the 
Reformation.  In  March,  1523,  he  ventured  to 
Waldshut ;  and  in  May,  visited  Zuingle  at  Zurich, 
with  whom  he  enjoyed  much  Christian  intercourse. 
His  mind  was  at  this  time  unsettled  on  the  subject 
of  infant  baptism,  and  it  formed  one  of  the  topics 
of  their  conversation.  Zuingle  and  Oecolampa- 
dius  were  in  a  similar  state  of  doubtful  opinion. 

To  carry  on  the  great  work  of  the  Reformation, 
Hubmeyer  preached  the  gospel,  and  with  amazing 
success,  in  St.  Gall.  As  the  church  could  not  hold 
the  crowds  who  assembled  to  hear  him,  he  preached 


BALTHAZAR    HUBMEYER    AND   WIFE.  Ill 

on  the  place  in  the  open  air.  He  there  contracted 
a  friendship  with  the  eminent  Dr.  Joachim  Yon 
"Watt,  afterwards  burgomaster  of  St.  Gall,  who,  at 
a  later  period,  offered  him  a  refuge  from  the  per- 
secutions he  endured. 

It  was  at  the  second  great  disputation,  held  in 
October  of  this  year,  that  Hubmeyer  appeared  side 
by  side  with  Zuingle  and  Leo  Jude,  as  the  main- 
tainer  of  the  word  of  God  against  the  priests  of 
Eome.  The  assembly  was  convened  in  the  large 
hall  of  the  town  house  of  Zurich,  in  the  presence 
of  the  members  of  the  great  council.  Three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  priests,  chiefly  from  the  cantons  of 
Schaffhausen  and  St.  Gall,  were  there,  with  more 
than  nine  hundred  spectators.  Joachim  Von  Watt 
and  two  others  were  named  presidents  of  the 
assembly.  The  subject  of  the  first  day's  discussion 
was  the  worship  of  images — a  question  then  of 
pressing  interest.  But  a  few  weeks  before,  a 
citizen  of  Zurich,  animated  with  zeal,  had  ventured 
to  dash  into  pieces  a  crucifix  that  was  held  in  high 
estimation  at  Stadelhofen.  The  publication  of  a 
small  pamphlet  by  Louis  Hetzer,  had  deepened 
the  feeling  of  intense  hatred  towards  the  use  of 
images.  In  this  tract,  Hetzer  adduced  the  con- 
demnation pronounced  in  Scripture  against  idola- 
try, and  its  approval  of  the  iconoclastic  zeal  of 
Ilezekiah. 

Hubmeyer,  on  the  first  day,  appears  to  have 
spoken  but  once,  and  then  briefiy.  He  spoke  of 
the  Christian's  duty,  by  command  of  God,  to  assist 
his  brother  if  he  should  have  fallen  into  error,  and 


112  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

if  possible  to  enlighten  him  upon  those  mistakes 
and  idolatrous  abuses  which,  in  the  course  of  cen- 
turies, had  disfigured  the  church.  In  all  the  dis- 
puted matters  the  clear  word  of  God,  contained  in 
both  testaments,  which  God  has  himself  sanctified, 
is  the  sole  judge.  That  word  must  be  made 
known.  It  testifies  of  Christ.  Holy  Scripture 
alone  is  the  true  light  and  lamp,  by  which  every 
human  argument  and  darkness  must  be  illumined. 
Christ  hath  himself  taught  us  to  take  in  hand  the 
lamp  of  his  saving  word,  that  when  the  Bride- 
groom cometh  we  may  enter  with  him  to  the  wed- 
ding. By  this  alone  can  errors  relating  to  images 
and  the  mass  be  destroyed;  and  what  is  built 
thereon  will  last  for  ever,  for  the  word  of  God  is 
immortal.  Thus  he  proclaimed  the  supremacy  of 
God's  word,  and  none  was  found  to  answer  him. 

The  second  day's  disputation  was  on  the  subject 
of  the  sacrifice  of  the  mass.  It  was  opened  by 
Zuingle  and  Leo  Jude,  who  met  with  but  few  and 
feeble  opponents  among  the  assembled  priests. 
After  a  pause,  Hubmeyer  arose.  He  referred  to 
the  decision  of  the  preceding  day.  It  was  well 
and  truly  established  from  Scripture  that  images 
ought  not  to  be  used,  and  he  wished  that  images 
had  never  come  into  use  among  Christians.  The 
laws  of  Moses  were  clear  and  explicit  in  their  con- 
demnation. God  commanded  them  to  be  burnt, 
and  they  who  made  them  were  accursed, — "And 
all  the  people  shall  say ^  Amen.''  The  hall  echoed 
with  many  voices,  saying,  ^' Amen." 

Hubmeyer    continued: — Either    images    were 


BALTHAZAR    HUBMEYER    AND    WIFE.  113 

commanded  to  be  honored,  or  they  were  not.  If 
they  were  commanded,  let  the  text  of  Scripture  be 
produced, — that  would  settle  the  question.  If 
they  were  not  commanded,  they  were  unnecessary. 
What  God  teaches,  whether  by  word  or  works,  is 
useful  and  profitable.  But  whatever  plant  he  hath 
not  planted  shall  be  plucked  up.  Were  they  use- 
ful, God  would  have  commanded  them.  It  is 
blasphemy  to  send  sinners  to  images  to  pray,  to 
draw  and  invite  them  to  exercises  of  devotion.  For 
it  is  Christ  who  calls  the  sinner,  who  invites  him 
to  the  wedding  feast ;  he  alone  moves  men  to  em- 
brace that  which  is  good,  and  God  the  Father  dis- 
ciplines those  who  come  to  Christ.  Thus  did  this 
eminent  man  clearly  perceive,  that  not  only  were 
those  devices  in  the  worship  and  institutions  in  the 
church  to  be  laid  aside  that  were  clearly  forbidden 
by  the  word  of  God,  but  those  also  which  could 
not  be  maintained  by  the  direct  command  or 
authority  of  Scripture. 

The  discussion  on  the  mass  was  renewed  on  the 
following  day.  After  a  few  words  from  Conrad 
Grebel,  asserting  the  existence  of  various  abuses, 
Hubmeyer  proceeded  at  some  length  to  refer  to 
them,  and  point  out  how  far  the  practices  of 
Rome  had  departed  from  the  institution  of 
Christ.  He  would  prefer  to  lay  aside  the  term 
"mass,"  and  call  the  ordinance  the  testament  of 
Christ,  or  a  memorial  of  his  bitter  death.  It  was 
the  greatest  abuse  of  all  to  call  it  a  sacrifice.  His 
dear  brethren  in  Christ,  Ulrich  Zuingle,  and  Leo 
Jude,  had  well  shown  its  contrariety  to  the  word 
10* 


114  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

of  God.  Thence  it  followed  that  it  could  be  no 
sacrifice  for  the  living  or  the  dead.  As  we  cannot 
believe  for  another,  neither  can  we  offer  a  sacrifice 
or  mass  for  another.  The  institution  of  Christ 
was  given  to  strengthen  the  faith  of  the  believing. 
The  pure,  clear  word  of  God  ought  to  be  an- 
nounced with  the  ordinance  of  which  it  is  a  sign, 
and  the  whole  service  be  observed  in  the  language 
of  the  people.  The  Lord's  people  should,  more- 
over, communicate  in  both  kinds;  he  who  does 
otherwise,  does  wrong  to  the  directions  of  Christ, 
which  he  has  given  in  his  last  testament. 
V  Hubmeyer  nobly  continued: — "These  are  my 
opinions,  which  I  have  gathered  from  the  Scrip- 
tures, upon  images  and  the  mass.  If  they  are  not 
right  and  Christian,  I  pray  you  all,  by  Jesus 
Christ  our  only  Saviour — I  entreat  you  by  the  last 
judgment,  that  ye  will  instruct  me  in  a  brotherly 
and  Christian  spirit  from  the  Scriptures.  For  I 
may  err:  I  am  a  man ;  but  a  heretic  I  cannot  be. 
I  wish  from  my  heart  to  be  instructed,  and  I  will 
promise  gratefully  to  confess  my  error.  Most 
cheerfully  I  submit  in  all  obedience  to  the  word 
of  God,  and  will  faithfully  follow  you  as  ye  are  fol- 
lowers of  Christ.  I  have  spoken;  judge  ye; 
teach  me.  To  Christ  I  will  pray,  that  he  may 
grant  us  his  grace  to  do  his  will." 

A  brief  colloquy  ensued  between  Zuingle  and 
Grebel,  the  latter  urging  the  abolition  of  abuses, 
the  former  admitting  their  existence,  but  referring 
the  subject  to  the  mandate  of  the  magistracy! 
The    disputation    closed;    but    not    without   the 


BALTHAZAR    HUBMEYER   AND   WIFE.  115 

magistrates  committing  to  prison,  or  banishing, 
the  men  whose  zeal  against  idolatry  had  given 
rise  to  the  discussion.  The  Reformation  halted, 
and  waited  the  pleasure  of  the  ruling  power — • 
and  Zuingle  would  have  it  so. 

Hubmeyer  returned  to  Waldshut.  Early  in 
1524,  he  published  eighteen  propositions  to  his 
companions  in  office  in  the  chapter,  inviting  them 
to  a  discussion,  to  be  closed  with  a  fraternal  meal 
at  his  expense.  Some  of  these  propositions  fol- 
low : — 

1.  Faith  only  justifies  us  before  God. 

4.  Those  works  only  are  good  which  God  hath 
commanded :  those  .only  are  evil  which  he  hath 
forbidden. 

5.  The  mass  is  no  sacrifice,  but  a  solemn  me- 
morial of  Christ's  death ;  for  which  reason  it  can- 
not be  oiFered  for  the  living  or  the  dead. 

8.  As  every  Christian  believes  and  is  baptized 
for  himself,  so  should  every  one,  according  to  the 
Scriptures,  for  himself  judge  whether  he  is  fed  by 
the  pastor  of  his  soul. 

9.  As  Christ  alone  died  for  our  sins,  and  as  we 
all  are  baptized  into  his  name,  so  must  he  alone 
be  addressed  as  our  Intercessor  and  Mediator. 

12.  The  time  is  at  hand,  indeed  has  already 
come,  that  no  man  shall  be  regarded  as  a  priest 
who  does  not  announce  God's  word. 

13.  The  fellow-believers  are  bound  to  maintain, 
and  properly  to  support,  with  food  and  clothing, 
those  who  preach  to  them  purely  and  plainly  the 
word  of  God. 


116  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

18.  He  who  labors  not  for  bread  with  the  sweat 
of  his  brow,  is  excommunicate. 

Other  propositions  condemned  fasting,  images, 
and  purgatory;  and  thus  show  that  Hubmeyer 
was  prepared  to  forsake  the  entire  circle  of  Romish 
doctrine.  The  chapter  met  early  in  1524.  The 
truths  advanced  were  vigorously  discussed,  until 
but  one  priest,  a  young  nobleman,  remained  stead- 
fast to  the  old  communion.  From  this  time  the 
reformation  rapidly  advanced  in  Waldshut,  under 
the  wise  guidance  of  the  chief  pastor  Hubmeyer. 
.  The  governing  powers  of  Austria  now  interfered. 
Rumors  of  the  approaching  peasant- war  began  also 
to  utter  their  voices  amid  the  revelry  and  reckless 
atrocities  of  the  feudal  lords.  Revolution  and  Re- 
formation appeared  to  be  synonymous  words,  and 
the  imperial  power  drove  Hubmeyer  from  his 
home.  His  refuge  was  Schaffhausen,  a  town  of 
Switzerland,  not  far  north  of  the  forest  towns. 
Soon  were  found  in  that  free  city  men  prepared  to 
sacrifice  the  exile,  for  political  favor  with  the  em- 
peror ;  and  he  was  again  constrained  to  return  to 
"Waldshut.  His  safety  was  of  brief  duration.  The 
men  of  Zurich,  who  in  their  reforming  zeal  had 
hastened  to  Waldshut  with  arms  to  aid  the  re- 
formation so  early  stayed  by  Austria,  were  com- 
pelled to  return ;  and  soon  after,  Hubmeyer  sought 
an  asylum  in  the  houses  of  some  faithful  men  of 
Zurich.  His  appearance  in  that  city  was  with  very 
different  feelings  and  results  to  his  former  visit. 
Now  he  was  a  Baptist,  a  proclaimed  adversary  of 


BALTHAZAR    IIUBMEYER    AND    WIFE.  117 

Zuingle, — a  hunted  bird,  that  quickly  fell  a  prey 
to  the  arts  of  the  fowler. 

Two  years  before,  the  question  of  infant  baptism 
had  excited  much  interest  among  the  leading  re- 
formers of  Switzerland ;  several  of  Zuingle's  early 
coadjutors  had  already  seceded  from  his  side,  op- 
posing his  indiscriminate  church  constitution,  and 
its  alliance  with  the  state.  Early  in  1524,  Hub- 
meyer  had  opened  a  correspondence  with  Zuingle 
on  the  subject,  and  was  accustomed  to  affirm  that 
he  possessed  an  early  writing  of  Zuingle,  in  which 
he  expressed  himself  against  the  baptism  of  in- 
fants. The  people  of  Waldshut  were  advised  not 
to  bring  their  babes  to  the  font.  Hubmeyer  waa 
sure  that  infant  baptism  had  no  authority  from  the 
word  of  God;  but  was  not  quite  sure  that  it  was 
right,  in  opposition  to  the  advice  of  Zuingle  and 
Oecolampadius,  to  abolish  it  altogether.  The 
parents  were  therefore  spoken  with,  and  not  until 
their  entreaties  were  very  urgent  did  our  Reformer 
yield  to  the  celebration  of  the  rite.  In  December 
of  this  year  he  wrote  this  sincere  and  earnest  note 
to  Zuingle : — 

"  Write  to  me  again,  for  God's  sake,  on  baptism. 
And  if  I  shall  have  offended  thee  and  Leo,  the 
fault  is  unawares.  Pardon  me.  Farewell.  Sa- 
lute Leo.     From  our  nest  at  Waldshut.     Thine. 

''  Balthazar. 

"Margaret  will  answer  the  request  of  Leo.'' 

From  this  time  his  views  rapidly  matured,  and 


118  BAPTIST    MARTYES. 

he  was  soon  treated  as  a  bitter  foe  by  his  eminent 
correspondent.  So  late  as  November,  1524,  Hub- 
meyer  wrote  of  Zuingle  as  his  ''  brother  in  Christ;" 
but  early  in  1525  he  complains  to  Oecolampadius 
that  Zuingle  and  Leo  had  forsaken  him.  Would 
the  Reformer  of  Basle  forsake  him  too  ?  Would 
he  not  from  friendship,  for  the  sake  of  Christian 
peace,  and  for  God,  hasten  to  correct  his  errors, 
and  to  restore  the  wandering  sheep  ?  For  openly 
did  Balthazar  teach  the  institutions  of  Christ. 
Who,  asked  he,  instituted  Baptism  ? — Christ. 
Where? — in  the  last  chapter  of  Matthew.  In 
what  words  ? — "  Go  ye  into  all  nations  and  teach 
them,  and  baptize  them  into  the  name  of  the  Fa- 
ther, and  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Ghost."  Alto- 
gether right.  Why,  therefore,  do  we  baptize  chil- 
dren? Baptism,  they  say,  is  a  mere  sign.  A 
sign  truly  it  is,  and  a  symbol  instituted  by  Christ 
in  most  pregnant  and  august  words.  But  it  can- 
not be  made  to  apply  to  babes ;  therefore  is  infant 
baptism  without  any  authority  whatever.  "  I  be- 
lieve and  know,"  he  concludes,  that  Christendom 
shall  not  receive  its  rising  aright,  unless  baptism 
and  the  Lord's  supper  are  brought  to  their  original 
purity." 

Thus  simply  and  clearly,  assuming  Zuingle 's 
views  of  a  sacrament  to  be  correct,  did  Hubmeyer 
reason.  The  answer  of  Oecolampadius  w^as  to  the 
effect,  that  as  all  children  are  born  in  original  sin ; 
— since  some  have  even  in  the  womb  been  sancti- 
fied ; — since  also  the  Most  Merciful  will  listen  to 
the  prayers  of  the  church,  seeking  the  salvation  of 


BALTHAZAR   HUBMEYER   AND   WIFE.  119 

the  offspring  of  the  faithful ; — and  as  otherwise  the 
children  of  Christians  would  be  worse  off  than  the 
children  of  the  circumcision ;  therefore  it  was 
right  to  bring  them  to  the  sacred  font.  These, 
and  such  like  arguments,  did  Oecolampadius  now 
use,  though,  in  another  letter,  he  admitted  that  the 
New  Testament  gives  no  authority  for  infant  bap- 
tism. Such  arguments,  however,  failed  to  con- 
vince Hubmeyer,  as  they  have  many  others,  that 
infant  baptism  is  an  institution  of  the  Saviour; 
and  at  Easter,  at  a  retired  village  not  far  from 
Waldshut,  in  company  with  one  hundred  and  ten 
persons,  he  was  baptized  by  William  Roubli,  one 
of  the  earliest  of  the  Swiss  Baptists,  and  for  some 
time  a  pastor  at  Basle. 

The  matter  was  now  public.  Hubmeyer  him- 
self baptized  some  three  hundred  persons  in  the 
few  following  months.  Great  excitement  every- 
where prevailed.  He  published  a  work  on  Bap- 
tism, which  brought  in  the  autumn  a  violent  and 
virulent  reply  from  Zuingle.  Some  of  the  Bap- 
tists were  cast  into  prison ;  and  so  cruel  were  the 
proceedings,  that  even  the  populace  complained 
that  injustice  was  done  to  them.  The  public  opin- 
ion was  so  strong  that  at  the  persuasion  of  the 
ministers,  a  public  conference  was  called  at  Zurich, 
in  which  Zuingle  took  a  leading  part.  It  failed, 
however,  to  convince  the  Baptists  of  their  errors, 
which  -many  of  them  were  made  to  atone  for  by 
imprisonment  and  fines. 

Hubmeyer  published  a  tract,  in  which  he  com- 
plains of  Zuingle  and  his   followers: — that  they 


120  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

had  proceeded  so  far  as  at  one  time  to  throw  into 
a  dark  and  miserable  tower,  twenty  persons,  both 
men  and  pregnant  women,  widows  and  young 
females,  and  to  pronounce  the  sentence  upon  them 
— that  thenceforward  they  should  see  neither  sun 
nor  moon  for  the  remainder  of  their  lives,  and  be 
fed  till  their  days  were  ended  with  bread  and 
water.  And  that  they  should  remain  in  the  dark 
tower  together,  both  the  living  and  the  dead,  sur- 
rounded with  filth  and  putrefaction,  until  not  a 
single  survivor  of  the  whole  remained.  He  tells 
us,  farther,  that  some  of  these  persons  would  re- 
fuse to  take  even  a  mouthful  of  bread  for  three 
days  in  succession  that  the  rest  might  have  the 
more  to  eat.  "  0  God !"  he  writes,  "-  what  a  hard, 
severe,  cruel  sentence  upon  pious  Christian  peo- 
ple, of  whom  no  one  could  speak  evil,  only  that 
they  had  received  water  baptism  in  obedience  to 
the  command  of  Christ !" 

About  July,  1525,  Hubmeyer  entered  Zurich, 
and  sought  a  refuge  at  the  Green  Shield  with  a 
few  friends  and  faithful  followers.  His  coming 
was  soon  known  among  his  fellow-believers,  and 
soon  also  to  the  council  of  Zurich.  He  was  sought 
out,  and  immured  in  the  cells  of  the  court-house. 
For  many  days  and  weeks  Zuingle  and  his  old 
associates  endeavored  to  shake  his  adhesion  to  the 
truth.  At  last  the  torture  was  applied.  Protestant 
historians  say  that  a  promise  of  recantation  was 
willingly  given,  and  written  with  his  own  hand. 
Alas  !  how  willingly !  the  pains  of  the  rack  were 
the  sharp  and  eftectual  arguments. 

On   the   22d  of  December,  he  was  led  to  the 


BALTHAZAR   HUBMEYER   AND   WIFE.  121 

minster,  and  placed  at  a  desk  facing  that  from 
which  Zuingle  long  and  vehemently  declaimed 
against  the  heresies  which  his  friend  was  there 
come  to  confess.  The  sermon  was  over,  and  every 
eye  turned  to  the  rising  form  of  the  sick  Balthazar. 
Though  not  old,  his  trials  have  told  on  his  robust 
frame  ;  and  with  a  quivering  voice  he  begins  to 
read  from  the  paper  of  recantation  before  him.  As 
his  articulation  becomes  distinct,  he  is  heard  to 
affirm  that  infant  baptism  is  without  the  command 
of  Christ.  As  the  words  continue  to  flow,  and 
add  certainty  to  the  incredulous  ears  of  the  crowd 
in  the  thronged  cathedral,  murmurs  float  omi- 
nously in  the  resounding  roof,  increasing  by  de- 
grees to  audible  expressions  of  approbation  or  of 
horror.  Zuingle's  voice  rises  above  all.  He  quiets 
the  coming  storm,  and  Hubmeyer  is  rapidly  con- 
veyed to  his  cell  in  the  Wellenburg. 

Redoubled  efforts  were  afterwards  made  to  re- 
call the  mischief  that  had  been  done.  Probably 
renewed  tortures  were  applied  or  threatened ;  for 
in  a  few  months,  the  sufferer  is  said  to  have  made 
a  public  recantation  both  at  Zurich  and  at  St. 
Gall ;  but  with  so  little  satisfaction  to  his  perse- 
cutors, that  although  released  from  prison,  he  was 
kept  in  the  t6wn  under  strict  surveillance.  About 
the  middle  of  the  year  1526,  by  the  aid  of  distant 
friends,  he  succeeded  in  escaping  from  Zurich,  and 
after  preaching  at  Constance  for  a  short  time,  he 
journeyed  to  Moravia,  passing  through  Augsburg 
on  his  way.  There  he  freely  proclaimed  the  gos- 
pel, and  in  all  the  region  round  about,  baptizing 

11 


122  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

many,  and  forming  clinrclies  of  Christ  according 
to  his  word. 

In  the  year  1528,  he  was  arrested,  probably  at 
Briinn,  where  he  was  teacher  of  the  church,  at  the 
command  of  king  Ferdinand,  and  sent  to  Vienna. 
After  some  days  he  was  thrown  into  the  dungeons 
of  the  castle  of  Gritsenstein.  At  his  own  request 
he  was  visited  by  Dr.  Faber,  of  Gran,  in  Hungary, 
who  had  been  in  former  days  his  friend.  Their  in- 
terviews, at  which  two  other  learned  men  assisted, 
lasted  the  greater  part  of  three  days.  The  sub- 
stance of  their  discussions  Faber  afterwards  pub- 
lished, and  hints  that  on  several  points  Hubmeyer 
yielded  to  the  cogency  of  h^s  arguments.  It  is  im- 
possible, however,  to  gather  from  Faber's  book  what 
Hubmeyer's  sentiments  really  were.  A  written  ex- 
position of  his  views  was  afterwards  sent  to  king 
Ferdinand,  by  Hubmeyer  himself;  and  it  is  im- 
possible that  any  important  change  could  have 
taken  place,  as  he  was  immediately  sentenced  to 
death.  The  sentence  was  read  to  him  in  presence 
of  many  thousand  men.  He  courageously  went  to 
the  stake,  on  the  10th  of  March,  1528. 

The  partner  of  his  life  was  also  partner  of  his 
sufferings ;  imprisoned  with  him,  she  too  was  led  to 
Vienna,  and  there  condemned  to  death  by  drown- . 
ing.  This  faithful  woman  in  the  river  Danube 
found  a  watery  grave.  What  a  meeting  must  these 
noble  martyrs  of  Christ  have  had  in  heaven  in 
the  presence  of  their  Lord ! 


JEEONIMUS  SEGEESON  AND   HIS   WIFE,   LYS- 
KEN   DIRKS. 


On  September  2cl,  1551,  these  excellent  persons, 
who  had  fallen  into  the  hands  of  their  spiritual 
tyrants,  and  endured  long  and  trying  sufferings, 
passed  through  several  severe  examinations,  and 
having  given  full  evidence  of  their  cordial  attach- 
ment to  Christ,  nobly  sealed  their  testimony  with 
their  blood.  Jeroninus,  in  company  with  a  de- 
voted Christian,  called  Tall  Hendrik,  died  at  the 
stake,  and  the  wife  of  Jeronimus  was  drowned  in 
a  sack  in  the  river  Scheldt. 

We  have  before  us  a  long  and  deeply  interesting 
correspondence  between  these  excellent  persons, 
who  were  confined  in  different  cells,  as  well  as 
with  other  friends.  The  whole  is  much  too  long 
for  insertion  in  this  volume,  but  two  letters  shall 
be  given  at  length,  and  a  few  passages  selected 
from  others.  To  explain  a  passage  in  the  first 
letter,  it  may  be  remarked,  that  the  Baptists  on 
the  continent  of  Europe,  at  that  period,  refused  to 
be  married  by  the  clergy  of  the  dominant  church, 
but  were  united  before  the  church  of  which  they 
were  members,  similar  to  the  practice  of  the  soci- 
ety of  Friends  at  the  present  day.  This  was  made 
a  matter  of  reproach  and  accusation  by  their  ene- 
mies, as  if  they  encouraged  and  practiced  licen- 
tiousness,   than   which   nothing  could  be  farther 

(123) 


124  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

from  the  truth.  After  the  Revolution,  when  mar- 
riage became  a  civil  act  in  the  Netherlands,  in 
1574,  and  1580,  the  Baptists  ceased  to  marry  in 
their  own  assemblies,  and  resorted  to  the  civil  au- 
thorities. 

The  following  is  the  first  letter  we  shall  give. 
It  will  be  remembered  that  both  parties  were  now 
in  prison,  charged  with  the  high  crime  of  worship- 
ing God  in  what  they  esteemed  the  New  Testa- 
ment way. 

"  Fear  God  always. 

*'In  lonesome  cell,  guarded  and  strong  I  lie, 
Bound  by  Christ's  love,  his  truth  to  testify ; 
Though  walls  be  thick,  the  door  no  hand  unclose, 
God  is  my  strength,  my  solace  and  repose. 

"  Grace,  peace,  gladness,  joy  and  comfort,  a 
firm  faith,  good  confidence,  with  ardent  love  to 
God,  I  wish  my  most  beloved  wife,  Lysken  Dirks, 
whom  I  married  in  the  presence  of  God  and  his 
holy  church,  and  took  thus,  agreeably  to  the 
Lord's  command,  to  be  my  wife.  Consolation, 
joy,  and  gladness,  my  dear  wife,  be  increased  and 
multiplied  unto  you. 

"  I  pray  the  Lord  very  earnestly  for  you,  that  he 
would  comfort  you,  and  remove  what  is  too  heavy 
for  you.  I  know  well,  my  chosen  lamb,  that  you 
are  greatly  dejected  on  my  account;  but  put  away 
all  sorrow,  and  look  to  Jesus,  the  Leader  and 
Finisher  of  our  faith,  and  let  us  henceforth  walk 
in  all  righteousness  and  holiness,  as  the  children 
of  peace.     Let  us  employ  well  the  time  of  grace, 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.       125 

and  think  wliat  great  mercj  the  Saviour  has  shown 
us.  Oh,  my  dear  wife,  think  only  what  a  faithful 
God  we  serve.  He  will  not  suffer  us  to  be  ashamed. 
Think  how  faithfully  he  led  the  children  of  Israel 
through  the  Eed  Sea  with  an  outstretched  hand, 
out  of  Pharaoh's  house  of  bondage,  and  from  the 
land  of  Egypt.  Think  how  they  had  to  prepare 
themselves  before  they  could  depart,  and  how  they 
ate  the  paschal  lamb  with  unleavened  bread,  and 
must  eat  it  standing,  and  how  they  covered  up  in 
their  garments  the  unleavened  bread  they  had, 
and  began  1^  depart  toward  the  wilderness.  The 
angel  of  the  Lord  went  before  them,  by  day  in  a 
pillar  of  cloud,  and  by  night  in  a  pillar  of  fire,  and 
thus  enlightened  them.  But  when  they  were 
afraid  of  Pharaoh  and  his  host,  the  people  began 
to  murmur  against  Moses,  for  they  had  no  stead- 
fast confidence  in  the  Lord  that  he  would  lead 
them  foi-th;  but  the  Lord  told  Moses  what  he 
would  do,  and  how  he  would  display  his  power  on 
Pharaoh  and  his  host,  and  he  commanded  Moses 
to  take  his  rod  and  stretch  forth  his  hand  over  the 
sea,  and  when  Moses  did  so  the  sea  dried  up,  and 
the  waters  were  divided,  and  became  a  wall  unto 
them  on  the  right  hand  and  on  the  left,  so  that 
they  went  through  the  sea  dry*shod.  But  Pharaoh 
pursued  them  with  his  host,  and  was  drowned  with 
all  his  captains  and  people ;  while  Israel  passed 
through  without  loss,  and  praised  and  gave  thanks 
to  God,  that  he  had  delivered  them  from  Pharaoh's 
house  of  bondage.  But  they  were  not  yet  in  the 
promised  land.    They  came  into  the  terrible  desert, 


126  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

where  there  was  no  bread.  The  bread  which  they 
had  brought  out  of  Egypt  was  not  much  ;  it  was 
the  unleavened  dough  which  they  had  brought  in 
their  clothes  on  departing  from  Egypt.  Then 
were  they  disheartened,  because  they  had  nothing 
to  eat;  but  the  Lord  fed  them  with  bread  from 
heaven. 

"  In  like  manner,  my  most  beloved  wife,  we 
have  not  overcome  all  things  when  we  have  con- 
fessed the  truth  and  separated  ourselves  from  the 
world,  and  renounced  all  sensual  delights  and  de- 
sires. We  must  likewise  wrestle  with  enemies, 
that  is,  we  must  wrestle  here  in  this  world  with 
emperors,  with  the  powers  and  princes  of  this 
world.  "We  must  in  this  world  suffer,  for  Paul 
has  said,  that  '  all  that  will  live  godly  in  Christ 
Jesus,  must  suffer  persecution.'  We  must  com- 
pletely conquer  the  world,  sin,  death,  and  the 
devil,  not  with  material  swords  and  spears,  but 
with  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  which  is  the  word  of 
God,  and  with  the  shield  of  faith,  wherewith  we 
must  quench  all  sharp  and  fiery  darts,  and  place 
on  our  heads  the  helmet  of  salvation,  with  the 
armor  of  righteousness,  and  our  feet  be  shod  with 
the  preparation  of  the  gospel.  Being  thus  strength- 
ened with  these  weapons,  we  shall,  with  Israel, 
get  through  the  wilderness,  oppose  and  overcome 
all  our  enemies.  They  must  be  brought  to  shame 
who  fight  against  the  truth. 

"  When  now  the  children  of  Israel  were  passed 
through  the  wilderness,  that  terrible  and  fearful 
wilderness  wherein  were  fiery  serpents,  and  had 


JEROXIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.       127 

journeyed  therein  forty  years,  and  surmounted  so 
many  perils,  and  had  taken  so  many  cities  and 
countries  on  this  side  of  Jordan,  still  they  had 
not  yet  entered  into  the  promised  land.  They  had 
not  yet  passed  over  Jordan  ;  but  the  Lord  showed 
Moses  the  promised  country  from  afar. 

"  0  my  dear  wife,  I  have  likewise  seen  from  afar 
the  promised  land.  I  hope  soon  to  enter  the 
beautiful  city  so  richly  adorned,  that  John  de- 
scribes. Its  foundations  are  twelve  precious  stones, 
its  walls  and  streets  of  pure  and  transparent  gold. 
The  city  has  twelve  gates,  each  gate  of  pearl,  and 
there  is  no  night  there,  for  the  Lord  God  en- 
lightens it.  And  the  Lord  told  Moses  that  he 
should  not  bring  that  people  into  the  promised 
land,  but  Joshua  brought  them  in,  and  the  Lord 
led  them  dry-shod  through  the  Jordan.  Lie  com- 
manded them,  that  they  should  keep  his  laws  but 
failing  the  Lord  gave  them  over  into  the  hands 
of  their  foes,  so  that  they  were  slain  by  their 
enemies.  Even  when  they  had  passed  over  Jor- 
dan, they  were  not  yet  in  full  possession  of  the 
land  of  promise,  which  flowed  with  milk  and 
honey;  they  had  to  take  possession  thereof  by 
mere  force,  and  to  slay  all  their  enemies,  and  to 
burn  their  cities  with  fire.  In  like  maimer  must 
we  also  enter  the  promised  land  by  force,  for 
Christ  saith  that  '  the  kingdom  of  heaven  sufFereth 
violence.'  I  now  for  the  first  time  know  what  war- 
fare is ;  no  one  knows  it  better  than  he  who  has 
experienced  it,  so  craftily  do  they  approach  in 
order  to  seduce  us. 


128  BAPTIST   MARTYRS.. 

*^  Know  that  I  received  your  letter  by  my  mo- 
ther, which  I  read  with  tears.  I  thank  you  that 
you  therein  so  heartily  comfort  me,  and  I  rejoice 
in  hearing  that  you  are  so  well  contented. 

"  Understand,  my  beloved  wife,  Lysken,  that  I 
have  been  before  the  Margrave,  who  had  there 
with  him  two  Dominican  friars,  and  two  justices, 
and  the  recording  clerk.  He  asked  me  if  I  had 
not  yet  thought  better  of  it,  saying,  that  he  had 
*  allowed  the  two  good  gentlemen  to  save  [absolve] 
my  soul  if  I  would  repent.  I  replied,  that  I  would 
not  renounce  my  faith,  for  it  was  the  truth.  They 
then  asked  me  what  my  faith  was  ?  I  said  to  the 
monks,  '  Ask  the  Margrave ;  to  him  I  have  con- 
fessed my  faith;  ask  it  of  him.'  They  harassed 
me  sorely ;  but  I  would  say  nothing  at  all  to 
them.  They  asked  me  how  I  knew  that  it  was 
the  truth  ?  If  God  had  spoken  to  me  by  word  of 
mouth  ? 

*' As  they  ccruld  get  nothing  more  from  me,  my 
confession  was  read,  namely,  that  I  did  not  approve 
of  the  sacrament.  I  said,  'No,  it  was  only  a 
bread-god.'  The  priests  were  wroth  that  I  so  con- 
temned their  god.  They  were  desirous  of  talking 
with  me.  I  said,  'I  will  not  hear  you,  nor  speak 
to  you  ;  but  let  my  brother  come  here  with  me,  I 
will  then  speak  with  you,  and  we  will  make  con- 
fession of  our  faith.'  They  then  asked  me  if  I 
was  not  sufficiently  established  in  my  faith,  that  I 
thus  relied  upon  my  brother  ?  I  said,  '  Yes,  my 
faith  is  strong  enough,  but  that  you  should  not 
wrest  our  words.'     They  said,  'We  shall  not  wrest 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  A^^D  WIFE.       129 

your  words.'  I  said,  'I  know  you  too  well,  and 
am  perfectly  acquainted  with  your  craftiness.' 

"The  Margrave  said,  ^It  shall  be  granted  you.'* 
I  thought  he  said  that  he  would  bring  a  Bible  with 
him.  The  priests  said,  '  When  the  little  children 
are  baptized,  they  then  obtain  faith.'  At  this  I 
laughed,  and  asked,  '  Why  then  did  they  not  go  to 
Turkey,  to  baptize  the  Turks ;  if  men  thereby  be- 
came possessed  of  faith,  as  you  say,  they  too  would 
become  believers?'  They  said,  ^Although  men 
should  baptize  the  Turks,  they  would  nevertheless 
remain  Turks  still.' 

"  They  pressed  me  sore  that  I  would  recant,  and 
become  a  good  member  of  the  Eomish  church. 
The  Margrave  and  the  justices  were  so  unrighte- 
ously moved  with  compassion  towards  me,  that 
they  said,  '  If  your  life  were  spared,  and  you  re- 
pented, and  became  a  good  member  of  the  Romish 
church,  I  should  have  good  hope  of  you  ;  for  you 
are  brought  here  young  and  for  no  crime,  and  I 
know  by  whom.  [The  Margrave  referred  to 
Jelis  Van  Aken,  a  Mennonite  minister,  by  whom 
he  had  been  baptized.]  You  are  also  descended 
from  very  worthy  parents,  and  your  mother  is 
almost  dying  from  grief.'  I  said,  'Even  if  the 
door  stood  open,  and  you  should  say.  Go,  only  say 
I  am  sorry,  I  would  not  go  ;  for  I  am  sure  I  have 

*  The  priests  often  misrepresented  the  martyrs  as  having  made 
a  recantation  in  these  solitary  interviews,  partly  to  increase  their 
own  influence,  and  partly  to  induce  others  to  follow  their  supposed 
example,  and  thus  injure  the  cause  of  truth.  To  prevent  this,  the 
martyrs  were  anxious  to  have  present  some  of  their  own  friends. 


130  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

the  truth.'  Tlie  Margrave  then  said,  ^If  you  will 
not  listen,  I  will  have  you  burned  alive.'  Thereat 
I  smiled,  and  said,  'Whatever  you  do  to  me,  on 
account  of  my  faith,  I  will  willingly  suffer.'  He 
added,  '  His  wife  is  the  greatest  heretic  there  is  in 
the  town.' 

''  I  cannot  sufficiently  thank  the  Lord  for  all  the 
strength  and  vigor  he  gives  me  in  this  trial.  I 
find  indeed  in  the  present  season  that  the  Lord  is 
with  us,  for  he  helps  us  so  faithfully  in  all  our 
need.  He  is  such  a  faithful  leader ;  he  gives  his 
servants  such  courage ;  strengthens  them  so  that 
they  do  not  fear.  They  neither  fear  nor  tremble, 
through  the  great  love  they  have  to  their  heavenly 
Father.  For  St.  Paul  says,  'Who  shall  separate 
us  from  the  love  of  God?  Tribulation,  or  dis- 
tress, persecution,  or  hunger,  or  nakedness,  or 
peril,  or  sword  ?  as  it  is  written,  For  thy  sake  we 
are  killed  all  the  day  long :  we  are  accounted  as 
sheep  for  the  slaughter.  N'ay,  in  all  these  things 
we  are  more  than  conquerors  through  him  that 
loved  us.  For  I  am  persuaded,  that  neither  death, 
nor  life,  nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  do- 
minion, nor  powers,  nor  things  present,  nor  things 
to  come,  nor  height,  nor  depth,  nor  any  other  crea- 
ture, shall  separate  us  from  the  love  that  is  in 
Christ  Jesus  our  Lord.' 

"  Therefore,  my  most  beloved  wife,  Lysken,  sub- 
mit yourself  to  present  circumstances ;  be  patient 
in  tribulation,  and  instant  in  prayer,  and  look 
at  all  times  to  the  precious  promises  everywhere 
given  us,  if  we  continue  steadfast  to  the  end.    Let 


JERONIMUP  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.      131 

ns  guard  the  precious  treasure,  for  we  have  this 
treasure  in  earthen  vessels,  and  cannot  hide  it.  It 
everywhere  discovers  itself,  and  is  much  too  pre- 
cious to  be  concealed.  We  are  so  joyful,  having 
this  treasure,  which  is  our  faith,  hope,  and  love. 
These  will  never  leave  us  barren  of  comfort  should 
we  even  be  placed  in  a  dark  hole,  separated  from 
each  other.  The  treasure  is  of  such  a  nature  that 
it  cannot  be  hidden.  The  one  calls  to  the  other, 
and  pours  out  his  treasure,  so  that  it  may  be  seen. 
We  are  so  happy !  everlasting  praise  and  thanks 
to  the  Lord!  We  call  upon  him,  we  sing  together, 
we  experience  great  joy  in  comforting  and  strength- 
ening each  other. 

"  The  Lord  gives  us  such  strength  and  might, 
that  we  cannot  thank  him  enough  for  the  great 
mercy  he  displays  towards  us.  Therefore  we  are 
not  weary  ;  for  although  our  outward  man  decay- 
eth,  yet  the  inward  man  is  nevertheless  renewed 
day  by  day;  for  our  affliction,  which  is  but  tem- 
porary and  light,  worketh  a  far  more  exceeding  and 
eternal  weight  of  glory  for  us  who  look  not  at  the 
things  that  are  seen,  but  at  the  things  that  are 
not  seen. 

"Thus,  my  dear  wife,  cease  not  to  serve  the 
Lord  your  God  with  all  your  heart,  and  to  follow  his 
footsteps.  'For  we  know  that  if  this  earthly  house 
of  our  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  build- 
ing of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal 
in  the  heavens.  For  this  we  greatly  long — for  our 
dwelling  which  is  in  heaven;  earnestly  desiring 
therewith  to  be  clothed  upon ;  for  me,  I  would  rather 


132  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

be  clothed  than  be  found  naked;  for  as  long  as  we 
are  at  home  in  the  body,  we  are  on  pilgrimage, 
and  are  absent  from  the  Lord. 

"  Therefore,  my  dear  wife,  look  diligently  that 
you  pass  the  time  of  your  pilgrimage  here  with 
fear  and  trembling ;  not,  however,  with  such  fear 
and  trembling  that  we  should  fear  the  world,  or  be 
afraid  or  tremble  before  the  world  because  they 
are  so  furious  against  us.  But  we  must  fear  and 
tremble  before  the  Lord,  so  that  we  may  keep  his 
commandments  and  statutes,  and  thus  finish  the 
period  of  our  pilgrimage  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord, 
and  attain  the  end  of  our  faith,  namely,  the  salva- 
tion of  our  souls.  Then  we  shall  ever  rejoice  with 
the  Lord,  and  meet  him  at  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead.  Therefore,  fear  not  the  world  ;  for  the  hairs 
of  your  head  are  all  numbered.  They  have  no 
power,  except  it  be  given  them  from  above.  Christ 
saith,  '  Fear  not  them  who  kill  the  body,  but  fear 
him  who  is  able,  after  he  hath  killed  the  body,  to 
cast  the  soul  into  hell ;  there  shall  be  weeping  of 
eyes,  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  and  their  worm  shall 
not  die,  they  shall  rest  neither  day  nor  night.' 

"  May  the  almighty  and  eternal  God,  so 
strengthen  and  comfort  you  with  his  blessed 
word,  that  you  may  abide  faithful  to  the  end. 
Then  shall  you  likewise  be  found  under  the  altar 
with  all  God's  dear  children,  where  all  tears  shall 
be  wiped  away  from  our  eyes.  There  shall  all 
tribulations  have  an  end.  Then  shall  our  de- 
spised body  be  glorified,  and  fashioned  after  the 
likeiiess  of  his  glory.     Then  shall  our  weeping  be 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.       133 

turned  into  laughter,  and  our  sorrow  into  joy. 
Then  shall  we,  who  for  a  short  space  are  despised 
and  contemned,  yea,  persecuted  and  cast  out,  and 
in  great  reproach,  pain,  and  contempt  are  brought 
to  death  for  the  testimony  of  Jesus  Christ,  enjoy 
an  everlasting  triumph,  and  dwell  for  ever  with 
the  Lord.  We  shall  be  clothed  with  white  robes, 
as  John  testifies  in  his  Revelation  concerning  the 
souls  of  those  who  were  slain  for  the  word  of  God 
and  for  the  witness  they  bare.  They  lay  under 
the  altar,  and  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying,  '  O 
Lord,  holy  and  true,  how  long  dost  thou  not  judge 
and  avenge  our  blood  on  them  that  dwell  on  the 
earth  V  And  to  each  of  them  was  given  a  white 
robe ;  and  it  was  said  unto  them,  that  they  should 
rest  yet  for  a  little  season,  until  the  number  of 
their  fellow-servants  also,  and  their  brethren,  that 
should  be  killed  as  they  were,  should  be  fulfilled. 
''  Oh !  what  a  glorious  company  shall  we  be, 
when  united  with  the  great  multitude  that  Esdras 
describes ;  and  of  which  John  in  his  Revelations 
speaks.  He  saw  'a  great  multitude  which  no 
man  could  number,  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds, 
and  people,  and  tongues,  standing  before  the 
throne,  and  before  the  Lamb,  clothed  with  white 
robes,  and  palm-branches  in  their  hands;  and 
they  cried  with  a  loud  voice,  saying,  Salvation 
to  him  who  sitteth  upon  the  throne  of  our  God, 
and  unto  the  Lamb.  These  are  they  who  came 
out  of  great  tribulation,  and  have  washed  their 
robes,  and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the 
Lamb.     Therefore  are  they  before  the  throne  of 

12 


134  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

God,  and  serve  him  day  and  night  in  his  temple : 
and  he  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne  shall  dwell 
among  them.  They  shall  hunger  no  more,  neither 
thirst  any  more;  neither  shall  the  sun  light  on 
them,  nor  any  heat ;  for  the  Lamb  which  is  on 
the  throne  shall  feed  them,  and  shall  lead  them 
unto  fountains  of  living  waters ;  and  God  shall 
wipe  away  all  tears  from  their  eyes.'  And  Esdras 
testifies  concerning  the  same  multitude,  and  says, 
'  that  they  stood  in  the  midst  of  the  hill  of  Zion, 
and  were  clothed  with  white  raiment ;  and  in  the 
midst  of  them  stood  one  taller  than  all  the  rest ; 
and  to  each  of  them  he  gave  palm-branches  in 
their  hands,  and  upon  every  one  of  their  heads  he 
set  crowns.'  And  John  says,  that  he  'saw  a  sea 
of  glass  mingled  with  fire,  and  them  who  had 
gotten  the  victory  over  the  beast,  and  over  his 
image,  and  over  his  mark,  and  over  the  number 
of  his  name,  standing  on  the  sea  of  glass,  having 
the  harps  of  God.  And  they  sang  the  song  of 
Moses  the  servant  of  God,  and  the  song  of  the  Lamb.' 
See  then,  my  dear  wife,  what  glorious  promises  we 
everywhere  find,  which  God  will  bestow,  and  give 
to  all  his  dear  and  sincere  children  who  here  abide 
faithfully  by  him,  and  have  ended  their  lives  to 
the  honor  of  their  Lord,  and  washed  their  robes 
and  made  them  white  in  the  blood  of  the  Lamb. 

"  Oh !  my  wife,  from  my  inmost  heart  beloved, 
I  cannot  sufficiently  thank  the  Lord  for  all  the 
great  kindness  which  he  shows  to  me-ward.  He 
gives  me  such  strength  and  power,  that  I  cannot 
express  it.     Ah  !  I  now  find  that  the  Lord  is  a 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.      135 

powerful  helper  in  time  of  need.  He  forsaketh 
not  them  that  put  their  trust  in  him.  For  he  who 
trusteth  in  the  Lord,  shall  not  be  put  to  shame. 
He  will  keep  us  as  the  apple  of  his  eye.  He  will 
deliver  us  from  all  the  assaults  of  the  devil,  and 
from  the  tyranny  of  this  world ;  yea,  he  will  pre- 
serve us,  that  we  shall  not  descend  to  hell ;  pro- 
vided that  we  faithfully  abide  by  him  unto  the 
end ;  for  Christ  saith,  '  He  that  endureth  steadfast 
to  the  end,  shall  be  saved.' 

"Oh!  my  heartily  beloved  wife,  abide  faithful 
to  the  Lord  even  unto  death ;  for  the  crown  is  not 
at  the  beginning,  nor  at  the  middle,  but  at  the 
end.  If  you  abide  faithful  to  the  Lord,  he  will 
not  forsake  you,  he  will  give  you  the  crown  of 
everlasting  life,  and  lead  you  into  his  kingdom; 
he  will  crown  you  with  praise  and  honor;  he  will 
wipe  away  all  tears  from  your  eyes.  My  dear 
Lysken,  will  he  wipe  away  all  tears  ?  then  here 
must  first  be  weeping.  He  will  heal  our  suffer- 
ings ;  therefore  we  must  in  this  world  first  suffer. 
Yea,  we  must  fight  and  strive  against  the  roaring 
lions,  dragons,  and  bears ;  yea,  against  the  evil  and 
wricked  generation  of  vipers  and  serpent  rulers,  and 
against  the  subtle  serpents  of  this  world,  and  the 
wicked  seed  of  Cain.  For  Paul  saith  that  'we 
wrestle  not  against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against 
the  rulers  of  darkness,  and  against  the  princes  and 
powers  of  this  world  ;  yea,  against  the  spirits  that 
hover  in  the  air,'  which  is  the  old  serpent  and 
Satan,  that,  as  Peter  says,  '  goeth  about  as  a  roar- 
ing lion  seeking  whom  he  may  devour.'     There- 


186  BAPTIST    MAKTYRS. 

fore,  be  diligent  in  the  conflict  with  prayer  and 
supplication  to  the  Lord.  Cleave  fast  to  the  doc- 
trine of  Jesus  Christ  our  Saviour,  that  you  may 
attain  to  the  end  of  your  faith,  namely,  the  salva- 
tion of  your  soul.  And  fight,  with  Paul,  the  good 
fight  of  faith. 

"  Herewith,  my  heartily  beloved  wife  and  sister, 
I  commend  you  to  the  omnipotent  and  eternal  God, 
and  to  the  word  of  his  rich  grace,  that  you  may  re- 
main steadfast  against  all  the  gates  of  hell.   Amen." 

As  it  would  extend  our  narrative  of  this  excel- 
lent husband  and  wife  beyond  all  proper  bounds 
to  give  even  half  the  correspondence  which  passed 
between  them,  we  shall  transcribe  only  one  letter 
from  Lysken  to  her  husband,  in  which  will  be  seen 
considerable  talent,  a  great  acquaintance  with  the 
Scriptures,  and  the  same  spirit  of  piety  which  he 
himself  showed.  Be  it  again  remembered  that 
both  of  them  were  now  confined,  though  sepa- 
rately, in  prison  : — 

"  Grace  and  peace  be  with  us  both  from  God 
the  Father.  The  love  of  the  Son,  and  the  fellow- 
ship of  the  Holy  Ghost  be  with  us,  to  the  perfect 
strengthening,  comfort,  joy,  and  salvation  of  our 
souls. 

''  My  beloved  husband  in  the  Lord,  understand 
that  at  first  the  time  seemed  exceedingly  long  to 
me,  because  I  was  not  accustomed  to  imprison- 
ment, and  I  heard  nothing  but  temptations  to  for- 
sake the  Lord.  They  said.  What  reason  had  I  to 
meddle  with  the  Scripture,  I  had  better  mind  my 
sewing,  '  It  seems,'  said  they,  '  that  you  will  follow 


JERONIMUS  SEGEllSON   AND   WIFE.  137 

the  apostles ;  what  are  the  signs  that  you  show  ? 
They  spake  with  divers  tongues,  after  they  had 
received  the  Holy  Ghost.  Where  is  the  tongue 
that  you  have  received  from  the  Holy  Spirit?* 
But  it  is  enough  for  us  that  we  have  become  be- 
lievers through  their  ^  words.  John  relates  that 
Christ  thus  spake  : — '  I  pray  not  alone  for  them, 
but  for  those  also  which  shall  believe  on  me 
through  their  word.'  Herewith  I  commend  you 
to  the  Lord.  The  grace  of  God  be  with  us  always. 
"  Praised  be  God  the  Father,  who  hath  had,  and 
hath  shewn  such  love  to  us,  that  he  hath  given  his 
dear  Son  for  us.  He  will  bestow  upon  us  such 
love,  such  joy,  such  wisdom,  and  such  a  steadfast 
mind,  through  Christ,  and  by  the  might  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  that  we  may  stand  firm  against  all 
devouring  beasts ;  against  dragons  and  serpents, 
against  all  the  gates  of  hell,  now  so  subtle  to  catch 
and  deceive,  destroy,  and  seduce  our  souls.  We 
ought,  therefore,  humbly  to  pray  the  Lord,  day  and 
night,  without  ceasing;  for  the  devourer  goeth 
round  about  us,  seeking  whom  he  may  devour ; 
and  we  are  not  ignorant  of  his  devices.  But, 
although  they  are  very  subtle,  the  Lord's  hand  is 
not  shortened  towards  those  that  love  him  and  do 
his  will ;  '  for  the  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  upon  those 
who  love  him,  and  his  ears  are  open  unto  their 
prayer :  but  the  face  of  the  Lord  is  against  them 
that  do  evil.'  Therefore  let  each  one  see  well  to 
himself,  that  the  face  of  the  Lord  be  not  against 
him ;  for  the  soul  of  him  that  sinneth  shall  die, 
unless  he  repent  before  the  Lord  come.  And  it 
12- 


138  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

is  not  made  known  to  us  when  the  Lord  shall  come, 
for  he  will  come  as  a  thief  in  the  night. 

''  Therefore  should  we  pray  to  the  Lord  for  each 
other,  that  our  flight  be  not  on  the  Sabbath  day, 
when  we  are  unprepared ;  nor  in  the  winter, 
when  we  have  no  fruit  on'  our  trees;  'for  every 
tree  that  bringeth  not  forth  good  fruit,  shall  be 
hewn  down,  and  cast  into  the  fire.'  But  that 
which  bears  good  fruit,  he  will  purge,  that  it  may 
bring  forth  more  abundant  fruit.  And  further,  it 
is  made  known  to  us  by  the  mouth  of  the  Lord, 
that  to  him  that  sins  wilfully,  '  there  remaineth  no 
more  sacrifice  for  sin ;  but  a  certain  looking  for  of 
judgment  and  fiery  indignation  which  shall  devour 
the  adversaries.'  Moses'  law  was  so  strict  that  he 
who  transgressed  it,  '  died  without  mercy  under 
two  or  three  witnesses ;  how  much  sorer  punish- 
ment shall  he  receive,  who  treads  under  foot  the 
Son  of  God !'  It  is  likewise  said  by  the  Holy 
Ghost,  '  K  we  suffer  with  him,  we  shall  also  reign 
with  him.  If  we  be  dead  with  him,  we  shall  also 
live  with  him ;  if  we  deny  him,  he  also  will  deny 
us  ;  if  we  believe  him  not,  yet  he  abideth  faithful ; 
for  he  cannot  deny  himself  Being  then  encom- 
passed with  so  great  a  cloud  of  witnesses,  let  us 
lay  aside  every  weight,  and  the  sin  that  doth  so 
cleave  to  us,  and  let  us  run  with  patience  the  race 
that  is  set  before  us,  and  look  to  Jesus,  the  finisher 
of  our  faith,  who  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before 
him  endured  the  cross,  despising  the  shame ;'  not 
threatening  when  he  suftered  for  our  sins,  and  the 
salvation  of  our  souls. 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.       139 

^*Thu8  may  we  suffer,  my  best  beloved  in  the 
Lord,  to  the  praise  of  God,  and  the  comfort  of  all 
dear  friends.  I  desire  that  Christ  crucified  may 
be  our  everlasting  joy  and  strength.  I  confide  in 
the  Lord,  who  only  is  wise,  and  who  has  given  his 
wisdom  to  those  alone  who  are  simple-hearted, 
guileless,  and  outcasts  jfrom  the  world,  that  he  will 
comfort  us  until  the  time  of  our  travail  arrive. 

"  My  dear  husband  in  the  Lord,  whom  I  married 
before  God  and  his  people,  but  with  whom  they 
say  I  have  lived  in  adultery,  because  I  was  not 
married  in  Baal;  the  Lord  saith,  'rejoice  when 
men  shall  say  all  manner  of  evil  against  you;  re- 
joice, and  be  exceeding  glad,  for  great  shall  be 
your  reward  in  heaven.' 

"Understand,  that  I  wept  much  because  you 
were  dejected  on  my  account;  and  because  you 
had  heard  that  I  repeatedly  wished  you  to  depart 
from  Assuerus,  and  that  you  had  not  done  so.  Be 
at  rest  concerning  it,  my  dearly  beloved  in  the 
Lord.  Had  it  not  been  the  Lord's  pleasure,  it 
would  not  have  taken  place ;  the  will  of  the  Lord 
must  be  done,  to  the  salvation  of  both  our  souls. 
He  suffers  us  not  to  be  tempted  above  what  we 
are  able  to  bear.  Therefore  be  comforted,  my  dearly 
beloved  in  the  Lord;  rejoice  yourself  in  the  Lord, 
even  as  before,  praising  and  thanking  him  that  he 
hath  chosen  us,  and  counted  us  worthy  to  lie  so 
long  in  bonds  for  his  name's  sake.  He  knows 
what  he  hath  purposed  by  this.  Although  the 
children  of  Israel  continued  long  in  the  wilder- 
ness, yet,  had  they  been  obedient  to  the  voice  of 


140  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

the  Lord,  they  would  have  entered  into  the  pro- 
mised land  with  Caleb  and  Joshua.  So  we  are 
now  here  in  the  wilderness,  among  these  ravenous 
beasts,  that  spread  out  their  nets  daily  to  take  us 
therein;  but  the  Lord  is  very  mighty,  who  for- 
saketh  not  his  own  that  put  their  trust  in  him.  He 
preserves  them  from  all  evil;  yea,  as  the  apple 
of  his  eye.  Let  us  then  be  at  rest  in  him,  and 
take  up  our  cross  with  joy  and  patience,  and  ex- 
pect with  firm  assurance  the  fulfilment  of  the 
promises  he  has  given  us,  nothing  doubting,  for 
he  is  faithful  that  promised,  that  we  shall  be 
crowned  on  the  hill  of  Zion,  and  adorned  with 
palms,  and  follow  the  Lamb.  I  pray  you,  my  be- 
loved in  the  Lord,  be  of  good  cheer  in  the  Lord, 
with  all  dear  friends,  and  pray  to  the  Lord  for  me. 
Amen.'* 

In  a  letter  written  subsequently  to  this,  the  emi- 
nently pious  Lysken  says  to  her  husband: — "I 
beseech  the  Lord  night  and  day,  that  he  will  give 
us  such  an  ardent  love  that  we  may  not  regard 
whatever  torments  they  may  inflict  upon  us ;  yea, 
that  we  may  say  with  the  prophet  David,  '  I  fear 
not  whatever  men  may  do  unto  me.'  This  our 
suffering,  which  is  light  and  temporary,  is  not  to 
be  compared  with  the  glory  which  shall  be  re- 
vealed in  us.  Since  then  the  will  of  the  Lord  is, 
that  with  Daniel  I  should  lie  long  in  the  lion's 
den,  and  await  howling  and  ravenous  wolves  and 
lions,  and  the  old  serpent  that  was  from  the  be- 
ginning, and  shall  be  to  the  end ;  I  entreat  all  my 
dear  brethren  and  sisters,  that  they  forget  me  not 


JEEONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.      141 

in  tlieir  pra^^ers.  I  will  likewise  cheerfully  re- 
member tliem  according  to  my  ability.  0  my 
dear  friends,  how  can  I  sufficiently  thank  my 
heavenly  Father,  that  he  hath  thought  it  meet  for 
me,  a  poor  sheep,  to  lie  so  long  in  bonds  for  his 
name's  sake  !  Night  and  day  do  I  pray  the  Lord, 
that  this  my  trial  may  prove  my  soul's  salvation, 
to  the  praise  of  the  Lord,  and  to  the  edification  of 
my  brethren  and  sisters.     Amen." 

She  goes  on  to  say : — "  Mcolaes,  from  the  sugar- 
refining  house,  brought  two  priests  here  to  in- 
struct me,  whom,  by  the  grace  of  God,  I  answered. 
They  told  me  that  they  were  much  grieved  because 
I  held  such  opinions,  for  they  could  not  consider  it 
to  be  faith,  but  only  opinion,  seeing  that  we  did 
not  hold  what  the  Christian  congregation  or  church 
directs.  But  I  told  them  in  reply, — '  "We  desire 
to  do  and  to  believe  only  what  the  church  of  Christ 
directs.  But  we  will  have  nothing  to  do  with 
Baal's  temple,  or  other  temples  that  are  made 
with  hands,  after  the  doctrines  and  command- 
ments of  men,  and  not  after  Christ.  With  these 
we  will  have  nothing  to  do,  for  Stephen  saith  that 
*  the  Most  High  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made 
with  hands,*  for  he  said  that  he  saw  'heaven 
opened,  and  Christ  seated  on  tlie  right  hand  of  his 
Father.'  And  Paul  saith  that  'we  are  the  temple 
of  the  living  God;'  if  we  do  his  will,  'he  will 
dwell  in  us,  and  walk  in  us.'  They  said  that  they 
were  the  sent,  and  were  those  who  sit  in  Moses' 
seat.  I  then  answered  them,  that  to  them  then 
belonged  the  woe  recorded  in  the  twenty-third  of 


142  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Matthew.  They  asked  me,  if  I  meant  to  say  that 
he  who  had  taught  me  these  things  was  sent  of 
God  ?  I  said,  '  Yes,  indeed ;  I  know  assuredly 
that  he  is  sent  of  God.'  They  then  asked  me  if  I 
knew  what  a  teacher  must  be?  I  replied,  'A 
teacher  must  be  the  husband  of  one  wife,  blame- 
less, having  obedient  children,  no  drunkard,  not 
given  to  wine,  not  incontinent.'  They  then  an- 
swered, '  If  we  do  wrong,  it  will  fall  upon  our  own 
heads ;  the  Lord  is  merciful.'  I  then  asked  them 
if  they  would  sin  because  of  the  mercy  of  God, 
and  said  that  it  was  written  that  we  should  not 
add  sin  to  sin,  and  that  we  should  not  say  [in  such 
a  connexion]  the  Lord  is  merciful. 

"We  spoke  much  unore,  which  it  would  be  too 
long  to  write.  I  told  them  that  they  were  ever 
learning,  and  never  able  to  come  to  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth.  They  said,  that  Christ  hath  spoken 
to  his  apostles,  'To  you. it  is  given  to  understand, 
but  to  others  in  parables.'  I  said  that  they  who 
rightly  understand,  to  them  it  is  also  now  given. 
At  last  they  crossed  themselves  most  zealously, 
and  said  that  I  should  know  it  well  when  I  stood 
before  the  judgment  seat.  '  That  will  be  so  in- 
deed,' I  said,  '  we  shall  sit  there  as  judges,  to  judge 
this  disobedient,  adulterous  generation.'  With  this 
they  went  away.  I  told  them  that  they  came  from 
Satan  to  torment  and  destroy  my  soul. 

**  Once  more  I  wish,  for  my  dear  husband  in  the 
Lord,  and  for  myself,  Christ  crucified,  our  unfad- 
ing joy,  and  a  love  that  passeth  not  away. 

"Know,  my  dear  husband  in  the  Lord,  when  I 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.      143 

read  that  you  were  so  happy  in  the  Lord,  I  could 
not  finish  the  letter.  I  was  constrained  to  entreat 
the  Lord  that  he  would  give  me  also  the  same 
joy,  and  preserve  it  to  the  end,  that  we  might  pre- 
sent the  sacrifice  of  our  bodies  with  rejoicing,  to 
the  glory  of  our  Father  who  is  in  heaven,  and  the 
edification  of  all  dear  brethren  and  sisters.  Know 
that  I  thank  you  heartily  for  the  letter  which  you 
wrote  to  me.  The  grace  of  the  Lord  be  with  us 
always.'* 

Shortly  after  Jeroninus  had  received  this  letter 
from  his  wife,  he  wrote  to  her  another,  breathing 
the  same  spirit  of  piety  and  of  joy  in  the  promises 
and  presence  of  Christ,  showing  also  that  the  rage 
of  the  enemies  of  the  holy  cause  had  not  lessened. 
Among  many  other  things,  he  says,  "  I  likewise 
inform  you,  beloved,  that  they  taught  me  severely 
*  *  *  but  the  Lord,  who  kept  my  mouth,  was 
mightier  than  all  their  torments.  To  the  Lord  be 
endless  praise  and  honor,  who  forsakes  not  his  own. 
They  got  no  names  from  me,  but  one  or  two  which 
they  read  to  me  out  of  a  letter.  I  told  them  these, 
to  hear  what  they  would  say.  But  they  asked  if 
%  were  mocking  them,  and  urged  me  still  more, 
and  said  that  I  should  name  the  women,  and 
others  too,  or  they  would  torture  me  till  the  next 
morning,  and  would  stretch  me  a  foot  longer  than 
I  was.  They  told  Gileyn  that  he  should  rack  me. 
This  man  did  it,  while  Gileyn  poured  water  into 
my  mouth  till  I  was  full.  They  also  had  me  laid 
naked,  all  but  my  shirt,  upon  the  bench,  and 
bound  me  to  it  with  four  cords,  that  I  thought  my 


144  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

head  and  legs  were  gone.  But  they  obtained  no- 
thing more,  praised  and  adored  be  the  Lord.  When 
they  loosed  me,  they  had,  two  or  three  together, 
to  raise  me  from  the  bench  to  dress  me  ;  indeed  it 
had  not  been  possible  to  have  borne  the  pain  with- 
out help  from  the  Lord.  They  told  me  that  I 
must  consider  of  it,  and  become  a  good  member 
of  the  Roman  church,  and  say  all  I  knew,  or  they 
would  know  still  better  how  to  deal  with  me.  But 
I  replied  thereto,  that  I  had  not  erred,  and  would 
much  rather  die  than  renounce  my  faith.  They 
then  said  that  they  should  come  again.  But  they 
can  do  no  more  than  the  Lord  permits  them. 

"  Eternal  honor  to  the  Lord,  who  hath  thus  far 
made  us  meet,  and  will  yet  make  us  meet,  to 
be  children  of  his  kingdom.  My  beloved  wife,  I 
commend  you  to  the  Lord,  and  to  the  word  of  his 
grace." 

It  is  with  reluctance  that  we  are  compelled  to 
omit  several  letters  to  the  brethren  and  sisters 
with  whom  Jeronimus  was  associated ;  but  the 
reader  will  readily  suppose  what  their  character 
was  from  the  specimens  of  those  addressed  to  his 
wife,  which  he  has  already  read.  We  shall,  how-* 
ever,  give  the  closing  paragraphs  of  the  last  letter 
he  addressed  to  her,  in  the  immediate  prospect  of 
death : — 

"With  this  I  commend  you  to  the  Lord,  and  to 
the  word  of  his  grace.  Herewith  I  take  leave  of 
you  in  this  world,  for  I  expect  to  see  your  face  no 
more,  but  hope  shortly  to  see  you  again  under  the 
altar  of  Christ.    Therefore,  my  beloved  wife  in  the 


JERONIMUS  SEGEESON  AND  WIFE.      145 

Lord,  notwithstanding  the  world  counts  us  de- 
ceivers, and  separates  us  bodily  from  each  other, 
yet  the  compassionate  Father  will  in  a  little  time 
bring  us  together  again  under  his  altar,  with  our 
brother.  I  doubt  not  of  this,  but  steadfastly  con- 
fide in  him.  I  have  committed  all  three  of  us  into 
his  hands,  that  he  may  accomplish  his  divine  will 
in  us,  whereby  his  name  may  be  most  praised  and 
glorified,  to  the  salvation  of  our  souls,  and  the  edi- 
fication and  succor  of  all  those  who  fear  the  Lord, 
and  serve  and  love  his  name.  This  he  will  do  I 
doubt  not,  for  he  forsakes  not  his  own  who  put 
their  trust  in  him.  Therefore  I  go  with  a  cheerful 
mind  to  present  myself  a  sacrifice  to  the  glory  of 
God. 

"  Had  it  been  in  my  power  I  would  have  come 
to  you,  but  Joachim  would  not  permit  it.  But 
Christ  will  soon  bring  us  together  under  his  altar; 
that^  men  will  not  be  able  to  prevent. 

"With  this  I  bid  you  adieu,  till  we  be  again 
united  under  the  altar. 

"  Remain  herewith  commended  to  the  Lord. 

"Tall  Henry  salutes  you  much  in  the  Lord. 

"  Behold,  my  dear  wife  in  the  Lord,  the  hour  is 
now  come  that  we  must  part.  I  go  before  you 
with  great  joy  and  gladness  to  my  heavenly  Fa- 
ther, and  to  yours.  I  most  humbly  beseech  you 
that  you  be  not  therefore  cast  down,  but  rejoice 
with  me.  Yet  I  am  somewhat  sorry  that  I  leave 
you  amongst  these  wolves ;  but  I  have  commended 
you,  and  the  fruit  of  our  union,  to  the  Lord,  and 
am  fully  persuaded  that  he  will  preserve  you  to 

13 


146  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

the  end.  In  this  persuasion  I  rest  myself  in  peace. 
Abide  devoutly  in  the  Lord." 

Such  was  the  cheerful  dovoted  spirit  with  which 
Jeronimus  Segerson  and  his  companion,  Tall  Hen- 
drick,  went  to  the  stake  at  Antwerp,  September 
2,  1551. 

Turn  we  now  to  Lysken,  who  had  recently  given 
birth  to  a  child,  referred  to  in  the  farewell  letter 
of  her  husband,  from  which  we  have  already 
quoted.  We  prefer  to  give  now  the  beautifully 
simple  and  touching  account,  written  at  the  time, 
and  on  the  spot,  rather  than  anything  of  our 
own : — 

"  Lysken,  our  sister,  having  lain  long  in  bonds, 
has  at  last  finished  the  period  of  her  pilgrimage, 
remaining  perfectly  steadfast  in  the  word  of  the 
Lord  unto  the  end ;  the  Lord  be  for  ever  praised. 
She  very  boldly  and  undisguisedly  confessed  her 
faith  at  the  tribunal,  before  the  magistrates  and  the 
multitude.  They  first  asked  her  concerning  bap- 
tism. She  said,  '  I  acknowledge  but  one  baptism, 
even  that  which  was  used  by  Christ  and  his  dis- 
ciples, and  left  to  us.'  '  What  do  you  hold  concern- 
ing infant  baptism  ?'  asked  the  sheriff.  To  this 
Lysken  answered,  'I^Tothing  but  a  mere  infant's 
baptism,  and  a  human  institution.'  On  this  the 
bench  stood  up,  and  consulted  together,  while  Lys- 
ken, in  the  meantime,  confessed,  and  explained 
clearly  to  the  people  the  ground  of  her  belief.  They 
then  pronounced  sentence  upon  her.  Lysken  spoke 
in  the  following  manner  to  the  bench : — '  Ye  are 
now  judges ;  but  the  time  will  come  when  ye  will 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.       147 

wish  that  ye  had  been  keepers  of  sheep,  for  there 
is  a  Judge  and  Lord  who  is  above  all ;  he  shall  in 
his  own  time  judge  you.  But  we  have  not  to 
wrestle  against  flesh  and  blood,  but  against  the 
principalities,  powers,  and  rulers  of  the  darkness 
of  this  world.'  The  bench  said,  '  Take  her  away 
fi^om  the  tribunal.' 

"  The  people  then  ran  earnestly  to  see  her,  and 
Lysken  spoke  piously  to  them ; — '  Know  that  I  do 
not  suffer  for  robbery,  murder,  or  any  kind  of 
wickedness,  but  solely  for  the  incorruptible  word 
of  God.'  When  they  came  to  the  Barg  church, 
she  said,  ^O  thou  den  of  murderers,  how  many 
souls  are  murdered  in  thee  !'  Proceeding  forward, 
between  the  officers,  unconfined,  the  officers  said, 
^ Stand  by;  make  room.'  Lysken  said,  'They 
do  not  hinder  me ;  they  are  welcome  to  see  me, 
and  to  take  an  example  by  me,  even  all  who  love 
the  word  of  the  Lord;'  and  while  continuing  to 
speak,  she  re-entered  the  prison. 

''The  people  were  hereby  greatly  moved.  The 
friends  were  cheerful.  Some  of  them  w^ent  in  the 
afternoon  to  the  prison,  to  visit  her,  and  many 
others  with  them.  Our  friends  conversed  a  little 
with  her,  and  said,  '  It  is  well  that  you  suffer  only 
for  well-doing,  and  not  for  any  wicked  works;' 
but  she  was  constrained  not  to  notice  them  on  ac- 
count of  the  other  people  that  were  there  in  the 
prison.  Lysken  spoke  boldly  and  piously  to  the 
people,  and  sang  a  beautiful  hymn,  so  that  they 
were  astonished.  Two  monks  then  came  to  tempt 
her,  and  they  three  were  shut  up  together  in  a 


148  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

room.  Lysken  would  in  no  wise  listen  to  them. 
The  chamber  door,  at  which  many  persons  were 
standing,  being  once  opened,  Lysken  came  to  the 
door,  saying  to  the  monks,  '  Go  till  you  are  sent 
for ;  I  will  give  no  ear  to  you.  Had  I  been  satis- 
fied with  your  leaven  I  should  not  have  come 
here.'  She  was  then  again  shut  up  with  them  in 
the  room.  Thus  these  wandering  spirits,  or  stars, 
came  with  their  false  and  poisonous  venom ;  but 
Lysken,  God  be  praised,  was  not  aflfrighted.  In 
good  spirits,  she  sang  a  hymn  in  the  presence  of 
the  monks.  One  of  the  friends  who  was  present, 
said,  'Sister,  strive  manfully!'  "When  they  heard 
that,  they  were  quite  enraged,  and  said,  'There 
is  another  of  her  people  encouraging  her,  who  de- 
serves burning  more  than  she.'  They  then  de- 
parted in  wrath,  for  their  voice  was  strange,  and 
was  not  heard  there. 

''  Lysken  was  now  shut  up  in  the  chamber  alone, 
fronting  tlie  street  where  she  was  accustomed  to 
sit.  No  one  was  permitted  to  come  to  her,  but 
those  who  had  the  keys.  When  the  monks  came 
into  the  street  to  go  away,  some  of  the  friends  who 
were  there  asked  the  monks,  'Will  she  not  turn?' 
They  replied,  '  K'o :  for  there  was  one  of  her  peo- 
ple there  whom  she  preferred  hearing.' 

"  As  it  now  began  to  draw  towards  evening,  the 
Lord  graciously  ordered  it  that  one  of  the  friends 
came  to  the  place  where  Lysken  sat,  and  spoke  a 
long  time  with  her.  The  people  in  the  street  be- 
ginning to  hear,  they  all  looked  towards  the  place 
where  the  friend  was.     Some  who  were  near  him 


JERONIMUS  SEGERSON  AND  WIFE.      149 

were  troubled,  and  called  to  him  to  go  away.  He 
then  said,  'I  must  first  take  leave  of  her/  and 
thereupon  said  to  her,  '  Stand  up,  sister ;  show 
yourself;  look  through  the  window.'  This  she 
immediately  did,  and  as  she  looked  out  upon  the 
people  standing  in  the  street,  there  were  among 
them  some  friends  who  called  out,  saying,  '  Dear 
sister,  strive  piously,  for  the  crown  of  life  is 
set  before  you.'  She  then  said  to  the  people, 
'  Drunkards,  whoremongers,  adulterers,  are  all 
borne  with,  who  will  read  and  talk  of  the  Scrip- 
tures ;  but  they  who  live  according  to  the  will  of 
God,  and  walk  consistently  therewith,  must  be 
harassed,  oppressed,  persecuted,  and  killed.'  She 
then  raised  her  voice  and  began  to  sing  a  hymn,  but 
before  she  had  finished  it,  the  magistrates,  with  the 
officers,  came  to  the  prison.  Some  of  the  friends 
said,  '  Sing  out,  Lysken ;'  but.  before  she  had 
finished  the  hymn  they  drew  her  from  the  window, 
and  the  evening  coming  on  she  was  no  more  seen. 
"  On  Saturday  morning  we  rose  early,  some  be- 
fore day,  some  with  the  daylight,  to  see  the  nup- 
tials which  we  thought  would  then  be  celebrated ; 
but  the  crafty  murderers  outran  us.  We  had  slept 
too  long,  for  they  had  finished  their  murderous 
work  between  three  and  four  o'clock.  They  had 
taken  that  sheep  to  the  river  Scheldt,  and  had  put 
her  into  a  sack,  and  drowned  her  before  the  people 
arrived,  so  that  few  persons  saw  it.  A  few,  how- 
ever, did  see  it,  and  they  testified  that  she  went 
courageously  to  death,  and  spoke  boldly,  '  Father, 
into  thy  hands  I  commend  my  spirit.'     Thus  she 

%  /^.        oar     ^w/ 


150  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

was  delivered  up,  and  it  came  to  pass  to  the  honor 
of  the  Lord  that,  by  the  grace  of  God,  many  were 
moved  thereby. 

"When  the  people  assembled,  and  heard  that  she 
was  already  dead,  it  occasioned  a  great  commotion 
among  them,  for  it  grieved  them  as  much  as  if 
she  had  been  publicly  executed.  For  the  people 
said,  '  Thieves  and  murderers  they  bring  publicly 
before  all  men ;  but  their  treachery  is  thus  more 
manifest.'  Some  simple-hearted  people  asked, 
^Why  must  these  persons  die;  for  many  bear  a 
good  testimony  concerning  them  V  Some  of  the 
friends  were  present,  and  spoke  openly  to  the  peo- 
ple, '  The  reason  is,  that  they  are  more  obedient 
to  God's  commands  than  to  the  emperor's  or 
men's ;  because  they  have  heartily  turned  to  the 
Lord  their  God,  from  lies  to  the  truth,  from  dark- 
ness to  light,  from  unrighteousness  to  righteous- 
ness, from  unbelief  to  the  true  faith,  and  have  ac- 
cordingly amended  their  lives,  and  been  baptized, 
seeing  they  were  real  believers,  according  to  the 
command  of  Christ  arid  the  practice  of  the  apostles.' 
They  further  showed  the  people,  from  the  word  of 
God,  that  the  papists  are  they  of  whom  the  apostle 
Paul  prophesied,  namely,  the  seducing  spirits  who 
teach  the  doctrines  of  devils ;  and  moreover,  that 
the  righteous  have  had  to  sufier  from  the  begin- 
ning, from  the  time  of  Abel  to  the  present ;  that 
Christ  also  suffered  and  entered  into  the  glory  of 
his  Father,  and  left  us  an  example  that  we  should 
follow  in  his  footsteps.  'For  all  who  will  live 
godly  in  Christ  Jesus  must  suffer  persecution.'  " 


JOHN  DESWARTE  AND  FAMILY. 


Brandt,  in  his  '^  History  of  the  Reformation^'"  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  at  Halwin,  in  Flanders,  states 
that  John  Deswarte,  whom  he  calls  an  Anabaptist, 
and  his  family,  who  had  been  betrayed  by  the  pro- 
fessedly Christian  pastor  of  that  town,  were  car- 
ried away  by  the  dean  of  Eousen,  to  Lisle. 

Deswarte  was  taken  with  his  wife  and  four  sons. 
The  two  youngest  of  his  children  not  being  at 
home  when  the  inquisitor  broke  into  the  house, 
were  warned  by  the  neighbors  to  escape ;  but  one 
of  them  said  to  Ifhe  other,  ^'  Let  us  uot  seek  to 
save  ourselves,  but  rather  die  with  our  father  and 
mother."  In  the  meantime  they  carried  the  father 
out,  who  seeing  his  sons,  said  to  them,  "  Will  ye 
also  go  to  the  l^ew  Jerusalem  ?"  One  of  them, 
who  was  scarcely  sixteen,  cried  out,  "Yes,  we 
will,  father;"  and  they  at  once  surrendered  them- 
selves. These,  with  two  other  persons  of  the  same 
faith,  who  happened  to  be  in  the  house,  as  also 
two  married  couples,  and  a  man  who  had  en- 
deavored to  comfort  them,  were,  at  several  times, 
all  burnt  at  Lisle. 

(151^ 


CHAPTER  III. 


CHRISTIAN   WOMEN    MARTYRS   ON   THE   CONTINENT   OF   EUROPE. 


EICHST  HEYNES. 

About  the  year  1547,  there  lived  in  Friesland, 
in  the  Ylst,  not  far  from  Sneek,  a  very  pious  wo- 
man, a  Baptist,  of  the  name  of  Richst  Heynes,  so 
called  after  her  husband,  according  to  the  manner 
of  that  country.  She  had  taken  upon  her  the 
easy  yoke  of  Jesus,  hearing  and  following  his 
blessed  voice,  and  avoiding  all  who  were  strangers 
to  Christ  and  his  church.  Her  holy  conduct  being 
observed  by  the  enemies  of  religion,  they  resolved 
either  to  compel  her  to  abandon  her  religion,  or  to 
put  her  to  death.  To  this  end  they  employed 
several  cruel  emissaries,  who,  like  devouring 
wolves,  soon  got  into  their  power  this  meek  and 
harmless  follower  of  the  Son  of  God. 

Her  husband  becoming  acquainted  with  their 
designs,  escaped  with  great  peril  and  danger  of 
his  life;  but  they  succeeded  in  imprisoning  his 
wife,  cruelly  binding  her,  and  treating  her  with 
great  severity,  though  not  far  from  confinement, 
the  midwife  being  with  her.  In  this  trying  con- 
dition they  led  her  away  from  her  home,  regard- 
less of  Hie  screams  and  tears  of  her  little  children, 
(152) 


RICHST   HEYNES.  153 

to  the  prison  at  Leuwarden,  where,  after  three 
weeks'  imprisonment,  she  gave  birth  to  a  son. 
This  child  bore  the  marks  which  its  mother  had 
received  from  these  inhuman  persons,  more  espe- 
cially in  its  arms,  which  excited  much  attention 
and  surprise  among  all  who  saw  her. 

These  enemies  of  Christ,  after  this,  inflicted  still 
greater  sufferings  on  this  pious  disciple,  and  tor- 
tured her  to  such  a  degree  that  she  could  not  raise 
her  hands  to  her  head.  Thus  was  she  inhumanly 
put  to  the  rack,  because  she  would  not  give  evi- 
dence against  her  Christian  associates ;  for  these 
awfully  cruel  men  still  thirsted  for  innocent  blood. 
The  great  Redeemer  she  served,  always  a  faithful 
Eefuge  in  time  of  need,  and  a  shield  to  those  who 
trust  him,  guarded  her  lips,  so  that  no  one  suf- 
fered through  her. 

After  all  means  had  failed  to  shake  her  religion 
and  her  constancy,  and  to  induce  her  to  forsake 
Christ,  she  was  condemned  to  death;  and,  as 
though  she  were  but  a  brute  beast,  was  placed  in 
a  sack,  tied  up,  and  thrown  into  the  wat^r  until 
life  was  extinct. 

All  this  cruelty  did  this  amiable  woman  endure 
patiently  and  unmoved,  remaining  faithful  to  her 
Saviour  until  death;  and  thus  was  she  removed 
from  suffering  to  enjoy  her  crown  of  everlasting 
life. 


ELIZABETH. 


On  the  fifteenth  of  January,  in  the  year  1549, 
Elizabeth,  a  tender  maiden  who  had  formerly  been 
a  Beguin  nun,  was  apprehended  for  her  attach- 
ment to  Christ  and  his  people. 

"When  the  officers  came  to  the  house  where  she 
lived,  they  found  a  Latin  New  Testament.  Hav- 
ing apprehended  this  holy  woman,  they  said,  "We 
have  the  right  person, — we  have  now  the  teacher ;" 
and  asked  "  Where  is  your  husband  ?  Where  is 
Menno  Simon?"  etc.  They  conveyed  her  to  the 
council-house,  and  the  next  day  two  white  Ca- 
puchin friars  conducted  her  to  another  place,  where 
she  was  brought  before  the  council.  She  was  asked 
by  them,  on  oath,  whether  she  had  a  husband. 
Her  reply  was,  "It  is  not  permitted  us  to  swear ; 
but  ouf  words  must  be  yea,  yea ;  and  nay,  nay.  I 
have  no  husband. 

Council. — ^We  say  that  you  are  a  teacher,  who 
mislead  many,  and  this  we  have  been  told  con- 
cerning you  by  others.  We  wish  to  know  who 
are  your  friends. 

Elizabeth. — My  God  has  commanded  me  to 
love  the  Lord  my  God,  and  therefore  to  honor 
my  parents.  I  will  not  therefore  tell  you  who 
are  my  parents;  for  to  suffer  for  Christ's  name 
is,  [in  the  esteem  of  the  public,]  to  the  dishonor  of 
my  friends. 
(154) 


ELIZABETH.  155 

Council. — On  this  we  will  not  further  press 
you,  but  we  would  know  what  people  you  have 
taught. 

Elizabeth. — Oh  no,  gentlemen,  excuse  me  here- 
in, and  ask  me  concerning  my  faith ;  that  I  will 
most  readily  confess. 

Council. — We  shall  use  such  severe  means  as 
will  make  you  confess. 

Elizabeth. — I  trust,  through  the  grace  of  God, 
that  he  will  keep  my  tongue,  so  that  I  shall  not 
become  a  traitor,  and  deliver  my  brother  to  death. 

Council. — ^What  persons  were  present  when  you 
were  baptized  ? 

Elizabeth. — Christ  said,  "  Ask  those  that  were 
present,  or  that  heard  it." 

Council. — ISTow  we  see  that  you  are  a  teacher ; 
for  you  wish  to  make  yourself  like  Christ. 

Elizabeth. — ^No,  gentlemen,  God  forbid  I  should ; 
for  I  esteem  myself  no  better  than  the  sweepings 
of  the  house  of  the  Lord. 

Council. — ^What  then  do  you  hold  concerning 
the  house  of  God?  Do  you  not  consider  our 
church  to  be  the  house  of  God  ? 

Elizabeth. — l^o,  indeed,  gentlemen;  for  it  is 
written,  ^' Ye  are  the  temple  of  the  living  God  ;" 
as  God  says,  "  I  will  dwell  in  them,  and  walk  in 
them.'' 

Council. — ^What  do  you  think  of  our  mass  ? 

Elizabeth. — I  do  not  approve  of  your  mass ; 
but  whatever  agrees  with  God's  word,  that  I  highly 
esteem. 


156  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Council. — ^What  do  you  think  of  the  most  holy 
sacrament  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^I  have  never  in  my  life  read  in 
holy  Scripture  of  a  holy  sacrament;  but  I  have 
read  of  the  Supper  of  the  Lord.  [Here  she  re- 
peated the  Scriptures  which  referred  to  this  ordi- 
nance.] 

Council. — ^Be  silent;  for  the  devil  speaks  by 
your  mouth. 

Elizabeth. — This  indeed,  gentlemen,  is  but  a 
small  matter ;  for  the  servant  is  no  better  than  his 
,  Lord. 

Council. — You  speak  with  a  proud  spirit. 

Elizabeth. — ^No,  gentlemen ;  I  speak  with  free- 
dom of  spirit. 

Council. — ^WTiat  did  the  Lord  say  when  he  gave 
the  Supper  to  his  disciples  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^What  did  he  give  them,  flesh  or 
bread  ? 

Council. — He  gave  them  bread. 

Elizabeth. — ^Did  not  the  Lord  then  continue 
sitting  there?  "Who  then  could  eat  the  Lord's 
flesh? 

Council. — ^What  do  you  hold  concerning  infant 
baptism,  that  you  should  have  had  yourself  bap- 
tized again  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^No,  gentlemen ;  I  have  not  been 
baptized  again ;  I  wais  baptized  once  on  my  con- 
fession of  faith  ;  for  it  is  written  that  baptism  be- 
longs to  believers. 

Council. — Are  our  children  then  lost,  because 
they  have  been  baptized  ? 


ELIZABETH.  '  157 

Elizabeth. — I^o,  gentlemen ;  far  be  it  from  me 
that  I  should  condemn,  the  children. 

Council. — Do  you  not  expect  salvation  from 
baptism  ? 

Elizabeth. — No,  gentlemen.  All  the  waters  in 
the  sea  cannot  save  me  ;  but  salvation  is  in  Christ ; 
and  he  has  commanded  me  to  love  the  Lord  my 
God  above  all  things,  and  my  neighbor  as  myself. 

Council. — Have  the  priests  power  to  forgive 
'sins  ? 

Elizabeth. — ITo,  gentlemen  ;  how  can  I  believe 
that  ?  I  say  that  Christ  is  the  only  priest  through 
whom  is  the  forgiveness  of  sins. 

Council. — ^You  say  that  you  believe  all  that 
agrees  with  the  holy  Scripture :  do  you  then  agree 
with  the  words  of  James  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^Yes,  truly,  gentlemen.  How  could 
I  not  agree  with  them  ? 

Council. — Has  he  not  said,  "Go  to  the  elder 
of  the  church,  that  he  may  anoint  you,  and  pray 
for  you  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^Yes,  gentlemen.  Do  you  then 
mean  to  say  that  you  are  of  such  a  church  ? 

Council. — The  Holy  Gbost  has  already  saved 
7/ou  ;  you  need  neither  confession  nor  sacrament  ? 

Elizabeth. — Ifo,  gentlemen.  I  acknowledge 
indeed  that  I  have  transgressed  the  command  of 
the  pope,  which  has  been  confirmed  by  the  em- 
peror's proclamation.  But  show  me  any  article 
in  which  I  have  transgressed  against  the  Lord  my 
God,  and  I  will  say,  "•  Woe  is  me,  poor  miserable 
creature !" 

14 


158  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

This  is  recorded  as  the  first  confession.  She 
was  afterwards  brought  again  before  the  council, 
and  led  into  the  torture  tower,  the  executioner, 
Hans,  being  present.  The  council  then  said,  "We 
have  thus  far  proceeded  with  mildness,  and  if  you 
will  not  confess,  we  will  treat  you  with  severity. 
Tlie  procureur-general  spoke  : — ''Master  Hans,  lay 
hold  of  her."  Hans  answered,  "Oh  no,  gentle- 
men, she  will  confess  voluntarily."  And  as  she 
would  not  make  a  voluntary  confession  he  put 
thumb-screws  on  both  her  thumbs  and  fore-fingers, 


THUMB-SCREW. 


so  that  the  blood  sprang  out  of  her  nails.  Eliza- 
beth exclaimed,  "  Oh,  I  cannot  longer  bear  it !" 
The  council  said,  "  Confess,  and  we  will  ease  your 
pain."  But  she  cried  to  the  Lord  her  God,  "Help, 
O  my  God,  thy  poor  handmaid :  for  thou  art  a 
helper  in  time  of  need."  The  council  cried  out, 
"  Confess,  and  we  will  ease  your  pain ;  for  we 
spoke  to  you  of  confessing,  and  not  of  calling  on 
God  the  Lord."  But  she  continued  steadfastly 
calling  upon  the  Lord  her  God,  as  we  have  already 
related.  And  the  Lord  relieved  her  pain,  so  that 
she  said  to  the  council,  "Ask  me,  and  I  will  an- 
swer you ;  for  I  feel  no  longer  any  pain  in  my 
body  as  before." 

Council. — Will  you  not  yet  confess  ? 

Elizabeth. — ^No,  gentlemen. 


ELIZABETH.  159 

They  then  put  on  two  iron  screws,  one  on  each 
ankle.  She  said,  "  Oh,  gentlemen,  pnt  me  not  to 
shame."  The  procureur-general  said,  "Ifo,  Miss 
Elizabeth,  we  shall  not  treat  yon  improperly." 
She  then  fainted ;  and  they  said  one  to  another, 
"  Perhaps  shp  is  dead."  Coming  to  herself,  she 
said,  "  I  am  alive,  and  not  dead."  They  then 
loosened  all  the  iron  screws,  and  spoke  to  her  with 
entreaties. 

Elizabeth. — ^Why  do  you  thus  entreat  n^e  ?  They 
deal  so  with  children. 

Thus  they  could  not  draw  from  her  a  word  to 
the  injury  of  her  associates  in  the  Lord,  or  of  any 
individual. 

Council. — Will  you  recant  all  the  things  you 
have  before  confessed  ? 

Elizabeth. — No,  indeed,  gentlemen ;  but  I  will 
seal  them  with  my  blood. 

Council. — We  will  no  longer  distress  you,  if 
you  will  now  freely  tell  us  who  it  was  that  baptized 
you. 

Elizabeth. — Oh  no,  gentlemen ;  I  have  already 
told  you  that  I  will  not  confess  that  to  you. 

After  this,  the  sentence  was  pronounced  upon 
her,  March  27,  1549,  and  she  was  condemned  to 
death  by  being  drowned  in  a  sack.  Thus  she 
willingly  offered  her  body  a  living  sacrifice  unto 
God.  Her  enemies  showed  the  extent  of  their 
hatred ;  happily,  however,  their  real  power  was  but 
small,  for  though  her  body  was  committed  to  the 
river,  her  happy  spirit  was  soon  filled  with  the  tri- 
umphant joys  of  the  upper  world. 


160  BAPTIST   MARTYRS, 

In  one  of  the  Mennonite  lijTiin-books  is  to  be 
read  a  hymn  descriptive  of  the  cloister  life,  which 
is  said  to  have  been  composed  by  Elizabeth,  and 
handed  down  from  one  generation  to  another,  till 
printed  in  1618.  It  consists  of  forty-eight  verses, 
with  the  following  refrain  or  chorus : — 

"  In  thanks  to  God  will  I  delight, 
And  love  and  praise  with  all  my  might, 
Honor  and  fear  him  day  and  night." 


MARIA,    OF    MONJOU. 


It  Las  been  always  true,  that  they  who  will  live 
godly  in  Christ  Jesus  shall  sufter  persecution.  So 
was  it  with  this  eminently  pious  woman. 

Having,  according  to  the  requirement  of  Scrip- 
ture, on  a  profession  of  faith  in  Jesus,  been  bap- 
tized, and  become  a  member  of  the  body  of  Christ, 
and  having  for  a  long  time  conducted  herself  with 
holy  consistency  in  the  church  and  towards  society 
in  general,  the  hatred  of  the  ungodly  displayed 
itself.  The  magistrate  of  Monjou  had  a  great 
dislike  to  this  poor  widow,  and  at  length  cast 
her  into  prison.  There  she  lay  confined  for  more 
than  a  year;  and  though  she  had  to  pass  through 
many  sufferings,  she  cheerfully  bore  them.  Con- 
stantly did  she  exhort  the  pious  to  walk  in  love, 
and  abide  firmly  by  the  covenant  of  Jesus  Christ. 
She  was  herself  always  diligent  to  present  her 
body  a  living  sacrifice,  holy  and  acceptable  unto 
God,  that  her  soul  might  be  built  up  as  a  spiritual 
house,  well  adorned  inwardly  with  the  word  of 
God. 

The  magistrate,  in  every  possible  way,  tempted 
her  for  three  days,  but  could  not  induce  her  to  re- 
nounce her  faith.  She  firmly  resolved  to  abide  in 
Christ.  The  magistrate  entreated  her  to  go  to 
what  she  considered  the  en^oneous  church ;  he 
even  promised  that  if  she  would  do  so,  he  would 
14^^  (161) 


162  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

release  her,  and  give  her  support  for  a  year. 
However,  she  would  not  consent  to  his  proposal, 
but  said  that  she  would  abide  with  Christ,  and 
was  willing  to  resign  her  life  for  him.  She  was 
therefore  condemned  to  be  drowned. 

When  she  went  towards  the  water,  she  sang  with 
a  cheerful  heart,  and  rejoiced  that  so  happy  an 
hour  had  arrived.  Thus,  like  her  Lord,  she  went 
as  a  sheep  to  the  slaughter.  She  remembered  the 
testimony  of  Scripture,  "  They  shall  kill  you,  and 
think  they  do  God  service."  Going  along  the 
road  she  said,  "  I  have  been  the  bride  of  an  earthly 
bridegroom,  but  to-day  I  hope  to  be  the  bride  of 
Christ,  and  with  him  to  inherit  his  kingdom." 

When  they  approached  the  water,  one  of  the 
dissemblers  said,  "0  Maria,  repent,  or  it  will  not 
be  well  with  you."  They  kept  her  by  the  side  of 
the  water  nearly  three  hours,  hoping  they  might 
persuade  her  to  recant,  and  to  follow  them ;  but 
her  only  reply  was,  "  I  abide  by  my  God ;  pro- 
ceed in  the  business  for  which  you  are  come  here. 
The  corn  is  in  the  straw,  and  it  must  be  threshed. 
In  like  manner  the  word  of  God  has  begun  to 
work,  and  it  must  be  perfected."  She  then  par- 
tially uncovered  herself,  and  went  cheerfully  to 
death,  saying,  "  0  heavenly  Father,  into  thy  hands 
I  commend  my  spirit."  She  was  then  driven  into 
the  water,  where  she  died,  witnessing  to  the  truth 
of  the  gospel  with  her  last  breath,  and  greatly  en- 
couraging the  believers  in  Christ  who  witnessed 
the  affecting  scene. 


A  YOUNG  LADY  OF  FOURTEEN,  AND  OTHERS. 


Another  illustration  of  the  doctrine  that  the 
followers  of  Christ  must  suffer  persecution,  was 
given  in  the  city  of  Rotterdam,  in  the  year  1544. 
A  number  of  the  followers  of  Jesus  were  assem- 
bled together  in  his  name,  to  speak  to  each  other 
for  mutual  edification,  and  their  establishment  in 
the  truth  of  the  gospel  which  they  had  received. 
Here  they  felt  the  spirit  and  the  power  of  prayer 
and  praise,  and  rejoiced  in  the  performance  of 
these  holy  exercises.  But  such  engagements  have 
always  excited  the  highest  displeasure  of  the  Ca- 
tholics, who  have  sought  to  put  an  end  to  them  by 
'  every  means  in  their  power. 

This  assembly  of  devoted  Christians  was  be- 
trayed into  the  hands  of  its  enemies,  by  a  woman 
who  came  to  the  house  where  they  had  met,  pro- 
fessedly to  borrow  a  kettle.  Being  thus  thrown 
into  the  power  of  wolves,  these  unresisting  sheep 
were  treated  by  them  most  cruelly;  in  order,  if 
possible,  to  draw  them  away  from  the  truth.  Tbey, 
however,  patiently  endured  persecution  for  the 
name  of  Jesus,  in  the  certain  hope  of  his  eternal 
kingdom.  As  no  torments  could  induce  them  to 
recant,  they  were  sentenced  to  suffer  death.  The 
men  were  beheaded  by  the  sword  in  the  city  itself, 
and  the  women  were   most  tyrannically  thrown 

(163) 


164  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

into  a  boat,  and  thrust  under  the  ice  till  they  were 
drowned. 

Among  those  thus  sacriliced  was  a  young  female 
only  fourteen  years  old.  She  composed  a  favorite 
hymn  in  the  old  Dutch  hymn  books,  beginning : — 

"To  the  wide  world  Iramanuel  came, 
His  Father's  kingdom  left,"  etc. 

Well  may  Brandt,  in  his  "  History  of  the  Reforma- 
tion^'" call  this  "a  dreadful  butchery  of  a  religious 
assembly  of  Anabaptists  at  Rotterdam." 

How  striking  the  contrast  between  this  church 
of  the  Lord,  and  the  synagogue  of  Satan ;  and  how 
different  the  spirit  they  breathed  !  The  followers 
of  Christ,  like  lambs,  manifest  no  spirit  of  revenge, 
but  freely  resign  their  lives  for  the  cause  of  their 
Lord;  but  their  enemies  ^'breathe  out  threatenings 
and  slaughter,"  and  delight  in  the  attempt  to  de- 
stroy the  church  of  the  Eedeemer.  How  strikingly 
different  too,  will  be  their  treatment  by  the  all- 
seeing  and  omnipotent  Judge  at  the  last  great 
day! 


CHAPTER  IV. 


CHRISTIAN    MEN   MARTYRS   IN   ENGLAND. 


GERARD,   AND  HIS  FRIENDS. 


About  the  year  1160  appeared  at  Oxford,  m 
England,  about  thirty  men  and  women,  called 
Publicans^  a  corruption,  no  doubt,  of  Paulicians. 
They  came  from  Gascony,  and  soon  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  government  by  the  singularity  of 
their  religious  opinions  and  practices.  They  were 
thorough  Baptists,  and  judging  from  the  testimony 
of  their  enemies,  as  well  as  that  of  their  friends, 
they  were  eminently  a  spiritual  people. 

"William,  of  Ifewbury,  a  monkish  historian,  tells 
Tis  that  these  persons,  whom  he  calls  vagabonds, 
emigrated  from  Gascony,  and  spread  their  doc- 
trine into  many  regions.  "  In  the  broadest  pro- 
vinces of  France,  and  Spain,  and  Italy,  and  Ger- 
many, so  many  are  said  to  have  been  infested  with 
this  pest,  that  according  to  the  prophet  they  seemed 
to  have  been  multiplied  beyond  the  sand  of  the 
sea."  He  adds  "they  are  mere  rustics  and  men 
of  inferior  condition,  hence  they  are  dull  in  the 
comprehension  of  argument ;  yet  if  they  are  once 
thoroughly  tainted  with  that  pest,  they  will  rigidly 
hold   out   against  all   discipline.     Hence,  it  very 

(165) 


166  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

rarely  happens  that  anj  of  them,  whenever  they 
are  betrayed  and  dragged  out  of  their  lurking 
places,  is  [are]  ever  converted  to  piety." 

These  poor  peasants  of  Teutonic  race,  and 
speaking  that  language,  could  not  accomplish 
much  in  the  way  of  converting  others.  Their 
enemies  tell  us  that  one  woman  professed  to  have 
been  converted  by  them;  though  she  seems  to 
have  returned  back  to  the  errors  of  popery,  and 
was,  probably,  the  person  who  betrayed  them  into 
the  hands  of  their  enemies.  Their  pastor,  named 
Gerard,  was,  it  is  said,  the  only  person  of  any 
learning  among  them,  and  "  to  him,"  says  the  his- 
torian, "  they  all  looked  up,  as  their  prince  and 
preceptor." 

"When  the  matter  was  made  known  to  king 
Henry  II.,  whose  love  of  justice  had  induced  him 
to  revive  in  England  trial  by  jury,  he  would  not 
allow  them  to  be  punished  without  a  hearing,  and 
ordered  a  council  of  popish  bishops  to  be  assem- 
bled in  Oxford  to  try  them.  The  imagination 
paints  before  us  this  proud  array  of  lordly  ecclesi- 
astics in  all  the  pomp  and  splendor  in  which 
popery  delights,  sitting  in  high  state,  assuming 
powers  which  belong  not  to  mortal  man ;  they  call 
before  them  a  little  body  of  poor  simple  peasants, 
foreigners,  without  a  friend,  without  an  advocate 
to  plead  for  them,  without  a  witness  to  prove  the 
innocence  of  their  lives,  or  liberty  to  appeal  to  the 
word  of  Grod  in  defence  of  their  doctrines.  How 
forlorn  and  desolate  appeared  these  poor  prisoners ! 

Gerard,  who  was  quite  equal  to  the  task,  spoke 


1G7 

for  the  whole.  His  answer  to  his  examiners  was 
— that  they  were  Christians,  and  that  they  ven- 
erated the  doctrines  of  the  Apostles.  On  a  more 
particular  enquiry,  it  was  found  that  they  denied 
several  of  the  leading  doctrines  of  the  Romish 
church,  such  as  purgatory,  prayers  for  the  dead, 
the  invocation  of  saints,  the  baptism  of  infants, 
and  transubstantiation.  They  would  admit  nothing 
contrary  to  the  word  of  God,  and  while  acknow- 
ledging themselves  unable  to  argue  all  the  points 
brought  forward  by  their  cunning  adversaries,  they 
positively  refused  to  surrender  the  faith  which  they 
held,  or  to  join  in  the  idolatrous  services  of  the 
papal  church.  They  were  then  threatened  with 
the  severest  sufferings,  which  threats  they  laughed 
to  scorn,  and  answered  in  the  words,  "  Blessed  are 
they  who  suffer  persecution  for  righteousness' 
sake;  for  theirs  is  the  kingdom  of  heaven." 

These  Publicans  being  found  so  firm  in  their 
rejection  of  false  doctrine,  the  bishops  reported 
them  to  the  king  as  obstinate  heretics,  worthy  of 
death ;  and  he,  under  priestly  influence,  sentenced 
them  all  to  be  branded  with  a  red  hot  iron  on  their 
foreheads,  as  heretics;  that  then  they  should  be 
publicly  whipped  through  the  streets  of  Oxford, 
and  be  afterwards  delivered  to  the  secular  power 
for  further  punishment,  or,  in  other  words,  should 
be  put  to  death.  To  the  proclamation  was  added 
a  command  that  none  of  the  people  should  show 
them  sympathy  or  comfort  under  the  severest 
penalties. 

The  sentence  was  fully  carried  into  execution. 


168  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Gerard,  to  distinguish  him  from  the  rest,  had  a 
mark  burnt  on  his  chin  as  well  as  on  his  forehead ; 
their  clothes  were  all  cut  short  by  the  girdles,  and 
in  the  depth  of  winter,  when  the  hedges  and  the 
fields  were  covered  with  snow,  every  man,  woman, 
and  child  was  cast  into  the  fields,  and  the  whole 
of  them  perished  with  cold  and  hunger.  The  his- 
torian exults  that  having  been  beaten  "  with  loudly 
sounding  stripes,"  they  were  driven  out  of  the 
city,  "l^o  one,"  says  William,  "showing  them 
the  slightest  degree  of  mercy,  they  miserably 
perished."  But  the  historian  is  wrong.  Misery 
was  no  part  of  their  lot.  He  himself  tells  us  that 
they  went  forth  to  endure  death,  "  not  with  linger- 
ing steps,  but  actually  rejoicing  with  much  joy; 
while  their  master  preceded  them,  and  sang, 
'Blessed  are  ye  when  all  men  shall  hate  you.*  " 

Thus  they  died,  but  the  truths  they  maintained, 
and  which  so  fully  sustained  them  in  the  hour  oi 
martyrdom,  are  immortal ! 


EICHARD  WOODMAN. 


As  true  religion  is  always  the  same,  so  are  its 
eifects.  The  soldiers  of  Christ  have  always  en- 
dured hardness,  whatever  post  they  might  occupy 
in  his  army.  The  mechanic  as  well  as  the  clergy- 
man has  brought  honor  to  his  Eedeemer,  by  his 
bold  utterance  of  the  truth,  and  by  his  readiness 
to  "die  for  the  Lord  Jesus."  Thus  has  it  been 
seen  that  the  faith  of  Christ  raises  a  man  above 
the  world,  and  that  he  will,  when  brought  before 
rulers,  take  a  stand  for  the  truth  to  which  nothing 
else  could  lead  him.  Richard  "Woodman,  burnt 
at  the  stake,  in  the  days  of  cruel  Mary  of  England, 
furnished  a  glorious  instance  of  attachment  to  the 
truths  and  ordinances  of  the  Gospel. 

This  extraordinary  man  was  a  simple  mechanic, 
— a  worker  in  iron  ;  his  residence  w^as  at  Warble- 
ton,  in  the  county  of  Sussex ;  and  his  apprehension 
by  the  so-called  officers  of  justice  took  place  when 
he  was  about  thirty  years  of  age.  The  curate  or 
minister  of  the  parish,  named  Fairbanke,  was, 
during  the  reign  of  Edward  VI.,  a  preacher  of  the 
truth,  and  zealously  entreated  the  people  never  to 
give  heed  to  "another  gospel."  He  was  "the 
husband  of  one  wife,"  and  discharged  his  duties 
with  much  satisfaction  to  his  congregation.  As 
soon,  however,  as  Mary  came  to  the  throne,  he 
veered  round,  embraced  the  creed  of  popery,  and 
15  (169^ 


170  BATTIST    MARTYRS. 

taught  the  people  the  very  opposite  doctrines  to 
those  which  they  had  been  accustomed  to  hear 
from  him. 

When  Eichard  "Woodman  heard  these  things 
from  his  lips,  he  could  not  forbear  to  admonish 
his  pastor,  and  for  doing  this  he  was  immediately 
apprehended,  and  committed  to  the  Queen's  Bench 
prison,  where  he  remained  a  year  and  a  half.  At 
the  end  of  this  period  he  was  transferred,  by  the 
notorious  Dr.  Story,  to  Bishop  Bonner's  coal-house, 
a  place  but  too  well  known,  with  all  its  miseries, 
to  many  of  the  holy  martyrs  of  that  period.  Here 
he  remained  about  a  month,  after  which  he  under- 
went twenty-six  examinations,  and  was  expecting 
to  be  led  to  the  stake,  when,  to  the  surprise  of 
himself  and  his  friends,  on  the  very  day  on  which 
the  noble  martyr  Philpot  was  burned.  Woodman, 
with  four  others,  was  suddenly  restored  to  liberty. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  this  happy  event 
silenced  his  tongue  as  to  the  movements  around 
him,  especially  as  to  the  death  of  Philpot.  His 
notice  of  this  event  was  in  language  equally  severe 
and  just;  and  strongly  expressive  of  the  indignation 
and  abhorrence  excited  in  the  minds  of  all  good 
men  by  the  murder  of  that  excellent  martyr.  After 
saying  that  Bonner  sent  for  him  and  his  com-  ' 
panions  and  discharged  them,  only  requiring  them 
very  earnestly  to  speak  well  of  him.  Woodman 
goes  on,  "  And  no  doubt  he  was  very  worthy  to 
be  praised,  because  he  had  been  so  faithful  an  aid 
in  his  master,  the  devil's  business;  for  he  had 
burnt  good  master  Philpot  the  same  morning,  with 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  171 

whose  blood  his  heart  was  so  drunken,  as  I  sup- 
posed, that  he  could  not  tell  what  he  did,  as  it  ap- 
peared to  us  both  before  and  after.  For  but  two 
days  before  he  promised  us  that  we  should  be  con- 
demned that  same  day  that  we  were  delivered; 
yea,  and  the  morrow  after  he  had  delivered  us,  he 
sought  for  some  of  us  again,  yea,  and  that  earnestly. 
He  waxed  dry  [thirsty]  after  his  great  drunken- 
ness, whereby  he  is  likely  to  have  blood  to  drink 
in  hell,  as  he  is  worthy,  if  he  repent  it  not  with 
speed.  The  Lord  turn  all  their  hearts,  if  it  be  his 
will." 

Woodman  carefully  wrote  down  all  his  earlier 
examinations;  but  the  bishop  of  Chichester  ob- 
tained possession  of  them,  and  either  concealed  or 
destroyed  them.  The  persecutors  then  proclaimed 
that  he  had  recanted ;  but  this  he  disproved,  by 
travelling  about  from  parish  to  parish,  and  talking 
so  openly,  even  to  the  principal  people,  that  it  was 
resolved  again  to  confine  him  in  prison.  That 
they  might  do  this  under  the  color  of  law,  they  in- 
vented a  charge  against  him  of  usurping  the  ofiice 
of  the  ministry  in  baptizing  and  marrying  persons ; 
from  which  he  so  fully  cleared  himself,  that  they 
could  not  execute  upon  him  the  warrants  already 
drawn  up.  However,  they  soon  issued  others,  and 
the  Queen's  chamberlain  sent  three  of  his  men  to 
take  him  while  ploughing  his  land.  As  these  men 
were  professedly  friends  of  Woodman,  he  had  no 
suspicion  of  them,  and  so  was  easily  arrested ;  but 
going  home  to  change  his  apparel,  it  occurred  to 
him  to  demand  a  sight  of  their  warrant,  when  they 


172  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

confessed  tliat  they  had  none  with  them.  He  then 
pleaded  the  right  of  an  Englishman,  and  refused 
to  go  with  them  unless  they  produced  one.  They 
locked  him  in  his  house,  and  guarded  the  door, 
while  one  of  them  went  to  obtain  a  warrant ;  and 
he,  taking  advantage  of  the  opportunity,  made  his 
escape  from  the  back  part  of  the  dwelling. 

Of  course,  a  strict  search  was  instantly  com- 
menced, which  "Woodman  eluded  by  taking  up 
his  abode  under  the  trees  in  a  thick  plantation, 
within  a  bowshot  of  his  own  house.  Here,  with 
his  Bible,  pen,  and  ink,  he  contentedly  stayed  for 
six  or  seven  weeks,  his  wife  daily  bringing  him 
food.  The  simple  and  fervent  man  wrote,  ''  I 
thought  myself  blessed  of  God,  that  I  was  thought 
worthy  to  lie  in  the  woods  for  the  name  of  Christ." 
Meanwhile  the  sea-coast,  from  Portsmouth  to 
Dover,  was  guarded,  to  prevent  the  poor  man's 
escape.  But  failing  in  their  search,  they  aban- 
doned it,  concluding  that  he  had  left  the  country, 
which  he  did  when  they  had  ceased  to  look  for 
him. 

Abroad,  however,  he  could  not  long  stay.  He 
ardently  desired  again  to  see  his  native  land.  "I 
thought,"  said  he,  "  every  day  seven  years,  or  ever 
I  were  at  home  again."  So  in  three  weeks  he  re- 
turned, and  notwithstanding  the  zeal  with  which 
his  enemies  hunted  him,  he  often  abode  a  month 
or  five  weeks  openly  in  his  own  house,  following 
his  accustomed  occupation.  His  enemies,  as  he 
himself  said,  could  lay  no  hands  on  him  till  their 
hour  was  fully  come.     It  arrived  at  last,  and  by 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  173 

the  treachery  of  his  own  father  and  brother  he  was 
led  into  their  grasp. 

The  circumstances  were  these: — Richard  had 
entrusted  property,  of  the  value  of  fifty  pounds  a 
year,  to  his  father  and  brother,  wherewith  to  pay 
his  debts,  and  to  maintain  his  wife  and  children. 
They  wickedly  reported  that  it  was  not  sufficient 
for  the  first  of  these  purposes,  whereas  it  was  more 
by  two  hundred  pounds,  than  all  his  debts 
amounted  to ;  and  Woodman,  anxious  to  do  jus- 
tice, applied  to  them  to  restore  the  money  and 
writings,  and  to  settle  the  account  with  him.  A 
day  was  appointed,  on  which  a  full  account  should 
be  sent  in  to  him  with  the  balance  ;  but  to  avoid 
this  restitution,  the  wretched  brother  w^ent  and 
apprised  his  enemies,  that  at  such  a  time  they 
might  certainly  seize  him  in  his  own  house.  The 
sherift*  accordingly  sent  a  strong  party  of  men,  who 
concealed  themselves  a  whole  night  in  bushes 
near  the  dwelling.  A  workman  in  Woodman's 
employ,  and  two  of  his  little  children,  falling  in 
with  them,  were  detained,  lest  they  should  give  the 
alarm  ;  and  in  the  afternoon,  while  the  poor  man 
was  reclining  on  a  bed,  making  shoe-thongs,  his 
little  girl,  who  saw  them  approaching,  ran  into  the 
room,  crying  out,  "  Mother,  mother,  there  come 
twenty  men."  Woodman  started  up,  and  thought 
to  have  slipped  out  of  the  door,  but  thej  were  too 
near,  and  his  wife  instantly  shut  and  bolted  it, 
while  he  made  the  attempt  to  escape  by  another 
door ;  the  house,  however,  was  immediately  sur- 
15* 


174  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

rounded,  and  the  officers  called  out  to  have  the 
door  opened,  or  they  would  break  in. 

"Woodman's  house  had  been  searched  at  least 
twenty  times,  by  night  and  by  day  ;  sometimes 
nearly  twenty  men  would  be  at  the  same  time  ex- 
amining it.  There  was,  however,  one  place  which 
they  were  never  able  to  discover,  being  formed  for 
concealment ;  and  into  this  he  went ;  while  his 
wife,  knowing  him  to  be  now  safe,  opened  the 
door,  and  telling  the  men  he  was  not  there,  ex- 
cused herself  for  having  barred  it  on  the  ground 
of  having  been  often  frightened  by  the  men  who 
were  sent  to  search,  and  also  supposing  that  the 
displeasure  against  her  husband  extended  to  her 
and  her  children.  They  demanded  a  candle,  say- 
ing there  were  many  secret  places  in  the  house ; 
and  after  a  most  minute  search  they  ceased  from 
their  task,  some  of  the  party  ^oing  down  to  the 
churchyard,  where  they  stood  talking  with  the  un- 
natural father  of  the  persecuted  man. 

The  conductor  of  these  officers  was  a  next  door 
neighbor,  who  had  been  persuaded  by  the  wicked 
brother  thus  to  betray  him.  He  knew  of  the  hiding- 
place,  which  his  friend  had  often  mentioned  to  him 
in  confidence ;  but  it  happened  that  he  had  never 
shewn  him  the  way  to  it,  only  that  the  entrance 
was  over  a  window  in  the  hall.  On  receiving  this 
information,  they  renewed  the  search,  and  one  of 
them  perceived  a  little  loft  with  three  or  four 
chests  in  it,  between  two  of  which  the  entrance 
really  was ;  but  as  they  could  not  discover  it,  they 
insisted  on  his  wife  pointing  it  out.    She  led  them 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  175 

to  anotlier  quarter,  and  then  gave  her  husband  a 
token  to  escape,  from  which  he  supposed  there 
was  no  farther  hope  of  his  remaining  concealed. 
He  could  not  descend  into  the  house  without  com- 
ing into  the  midst  of  them  ;  and  his  only  chance 
was  to  break  through  some  boarding,  which  he 
did  by  setting  his  shoulder  against  it ;  but  unhap- 
pily the  noise  thus  occasioned,  attracted  their  at- 
tention, and  as  he  attempted  to  jump  from  a 
window  they  saw  him.  He  had  not  had  time  to 
put  on  his  shoes,  w^hen  the  alarm  was  first  given 
him  by  his  child  ;  and  he  had  now  to  run  along  a 
lane  strewn  over  with  sharp  cinders,  while  a  shout 
was  raised,  and  a  pursuit  commenced  with  cries  of 
"  Strike  him,  strike  him!"  He  looked  back,  and 
saw  but  one  man  within  a  hundred  yards  of  him ; 
and  had  he  been  shod,  he  might  have  easily  got 
away,  being  strong,  swift,  and  courageous;  but 
just  then  one  of  his  naked  feet  fell  upon  a  hard- 
pointed  cinder,  and  starting  from  it,  he  incautiously 
stept  into  a  hole  full  of  mire,  which  threw  him 
down.  Before  he  could  recover  himself,  the  pur- 
suer, a  very  powerful  man,  came  upon  him,  and 
he  was  taken.  On  this  he  remarks,  "It  was  not 
Grod's  will ;  for  if  it  had  been,  I  should  have  es- 
caped from  them  all,  if  there  had  been  ten  thou 
sand  of  them." 

While  they  were  conducting  him  to  his  home, 
to  put  on  his  shoes,  and  complete  his  dress,  one 
of  them  sneeringly  said,  ''  Now  your  master  has 
deceived  you ;  you  said  you  were  an  angel ;  and 
if  so,  why  did  you  not  flee  away  from  us-"     He 


170  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

asked  who  had  ev^r  heard  him  say  he  was  an 
angel  ?  "  It  is  not/'  he  added,  "  the  first  he  by  a 
thousand  that  they  have  made  for  me.  Angels 
are  never  of  mortal  birth ;  but  if  they  had  said 
they  heard  me  say  that  I  do  trust  I  am  a  saint, 
they  had  not  said  amiss."  "  What !  do  you  think 
to  be  a  saint?"  asked  the  other.  "Yea,  that  I 
do,  and  am  already  in  God's  sight,  I  trust  in  God; 
for  he  who  is  not  a  saint  in  God's  sight  already,  is 
a  devil.  Therefore  he  who  scorneth  to  be  a  saint, 
let  him  be  a  devil." 

At  his  own  door  he  met  his  father,  who  desired 
him  to  remember  himself;  meaning  that  he 
should  consider  the  consequences  of  persisting  in 
his  religious  faith;  to  which  he  answered,  "I 
praise  God  that  I  am  well  remembered  whereabout 
I  go.  This  way  was  appointed  of  God  for  me  to 
be  delivered  into  the  hands  of  mine  enemies ;  but 
woe  to  him  by  whom  I  am  betrayed  !  It  would  be 
good  for  that  man  that  he  had  never  been  born, 
if  he  repent  not  with  speed.  The  Scriptures  are 
now  fulfilled  on  me;  'For  the  father  shall  be 
against  the  son  ;  and  the  brother  shall  deliver  the 
brother  to  death,'  as  it  is  this  day  come  to  pass." 
One  of  the  men  sneeringly  remarked,  "that  he  was 
a  good  child  to  ace ase  his  father;"  he  answered, 
"  I  accuse  him  not,  but  say  my  mind ;  for  there 
was  no  man  knew  me  to  be  at  home  but  my  father, 
my  brother,  and  one  more ;  the  which  I  dare  ssij 
would  not  hurt  me  for  all  the  good  in  this  town." 
After  some  further  talk,  and  cruelly  refusing  him 
even  to  enter  the  door  of  his  house,  at  which  he 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  177 

was  obliged  to  put  on  his  shoes  and  the  rest  of 
his  clothes,  they  bound  him  by  putting  a  hound's 
slip  over  his  arms;  which  he  said,  rejoiced  his 
heart,  that  he  was  counted  worthy  to  be  bound  for 
the  name  of  God.  He  then  took  leave  of  his  poor 
wife,  his  children,  and  his  wretched  father,  and 
was  led  away. 

In  the  following  April  the  sheriffs  sent  Wood- 
man to  London,  where,  after  two  days,  he  was 
brought  before  his  Ordinary,  the  bishop  of  Chi- 
chester, to  whom  he  had  appealed ;  Story,  Cook, 
and  others  assisted  in  the  examination.  The 
bishop  told  him  he  was  sorry  for  him,  as  were  all 
the  gentlemen  of  his  county,  where  he  had  a 
good  report,  both  among  rich  and  poor.  On  this 
account  he  wished  him  to  consider  himself,  with 
his  family  and  friends,  and  not  to  suppose  that  he 
was  wiser  than  all  in  the  realm,  but  to  receive  in- 
struction. The  good  man  disclaimed  any  wish  to 
seem  wiser  than  others,  being  willing  to  learn  of 
any  man  who  could  or  would  teach  him  the  truth. 
^'For  my  wife  and  children,"  said  he,  "  God  doth 
know  how  I  love  them  in  him,  and  my  life  also. 
My  life,  my  wife,  and  my  children  are  all  in  God's 
hands,  and  I  have  them  all  as  though  I  had  them  not, 
I  trust,  according  to  St.  Paul's  words.  But  if  I  had 
ten  thousand  pounds  of  gold,  I  had  rather  lose  it 
all  than  them,  if  I  might  choose,  and  not  displease 
God.'^ 

He  then  told  the  bishop  of  Chichester  that  he 
had  appealed  to  him,  that  if  any  fault  was  found 
in  him,  he  might  be  reformed  by  him ;  and  also, 


178  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

that  if  his  blood  was  shed  unrighteously,  it  might 
be  required  at  his  hands,  who  had  undertaken  to 
be  the  spiritual  physician  of  that  part  of  the  coun- 
try. On  his  saying  this,  Story  broke  out  as  usual, 
'^Is  not  this  a  perverse  fellow,  to  lay  to  your 
charge  that  his  blood  shall  be  required  at  your 
hands?"  And  turning  to  Woodman,  he  said, 
"  Thinkest  thou  that  thou  shalt  be  put  to  death 
unjustly,  that  thy  blood  shall  be  required  ?  No, 
if  he  should  condemn  a  hundred  such  heretics  as 
thou  art.  I  helped  to  rid  a  good  number  of  you  ; 
and  I  promise  thee  I  will  help  to  rid  thee  too,  the 
best  that  I  can." 

Woodman  would  have  replied,  but  Chichester 
enjoined  them  both  to  be  silent ;  and  then  kindly 
addressing  Woodman,  calling  him  neighbor,  told 
him  that  he,  as  his  spiritual  pastor,  was  about  to 
give  him  spiritual  counsel ;  therefore  he  must 
listen  to  him.  Woodman  begged  first  to  ask  him 
a  question,  which  was,  whether  he  was  sure  that 
he  had  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  bishop  said  ''K"o;" 
swearing  by  St.  Mary  that  he  dare  not  be  so  bold 
as  to  say  so.  The  prisoner  then  told  him  that  he 
was  like  the  waves  of  the  sea,  unstable ;  and 
threatened  him  with  the  doom  of  the  Laodicean 
church ;  this  put  Story  into  a  great  rage,  who, 
with  great  violence  told  him  that  he  had  the  devil 
within  him,  and  was  mad  ;  and  that  he  was  worse 
than  Satan ;  with  many  other  similar  things. 
Chichester  remarked,  that  the  man  was  sent  to 
him  to  learn,  but  presumed  to  teach  him. 

The  poor  man,  on  seeing  their  blindness,  bui'st 


IIICHARB    WOODMAT^.  179 

into  tears,  and  said,  "  The  Jews  told  Christ  he  had 
a  devil,  and  was  mad,  as  ye  have  said  that  I  am  ; 
and  I  know  that  the  servant  is  not  above  his  mas- 
ter. And  God  forbid  that  I  should  learn  of  him 
who  confesseth  that  he  hath  not  the  Spirit  of  God.'* 
"  Why,"  said  the  bishop,  "do  you  think  that  you 
have  the  Spirit  of  God?"  "I  believe,  verily,  that 
I  have  the  Spirit  of  God,"  was  the  reply.  Chiches- 
ter said,  "  You  boast  more  than  ever  Paul  did,  or 
any  of  the  apostles ;  the  which  is  great  presump- 
tion." Woodman  answered,  "I  boast  not  in  my- 
self, but  in  the  gift  of  God,  as  Paul  did ;  for  he 
said  that  he  believed  verily  that  he  had  the  Spirit 
of  God  ;  making  no  doubt,  as  in  1.  Cor.  vii."  "  It 
is  not  so,"  said  the  bishop,  "you  belie  the  text." 
"  It  it  be  not  so,  let  me  be  burned  to-morrow,"  re- 
plied Woodman.  "Thou  shalt  not  be  burned  to- 
morrow," said  Story,  "but  thou  shalt  be  burned 
within  these  six  days,  I  promise  thee." 

Chichester  next  qualified  his  denial  of  the  quota- 
tion, by  saying  that  if  it  was  so,  it  was  wrongly 
translated ;  as  it  was,  he  said,  in  a  thousand 
other  places.  They  then  consulted  the  Latin  and 
Greek  passages,  and  he  told  him  that  in  both  Paul 
said  he  supposed  he  had  the  Spirit  of  God,  but  was 
not  sure ;  the  bishop  adding,  "  Even  so  I  hope  and 
suppose  I  have  the  Spirit  of  God,  but  I  am  not 
sure." 

Woodman  then  went  on  to  say,  that  if  men  had 
wrongly  translated  the  Bible,  woe  unto  such  trans- 
lators !  However,  he  warned  them  to  beware  that 
they  did  not  slander  the  translators,  whom  he  be- 


180  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

lieved  to  have  had  the  fear  of  God  before  their 
eyes.  He  offered  to  prove,  by  places  enough,  be- 
sides the  one  quoted,  that  Paul  had  the  Spirit  of 
God ;  as  he  himself,  and  all  the  elect,  had.  This 
he  did  by  citing,  "Iso  man  can  believe  that  Jesus 
is  the  Lord,  but  by  the  Holy  Ghost;"  and  went 
on,  "I  do  believe  that  Jesus  Christ  is  my  Ke- 
deemer,  and  that  I  shall  be  saved  from  all  my 
sins  by  his  death  and  blood-shedding,  as  Paul  and 
all  the  apostles  did,  and  as  all  faithful  people 
ought  to  do,  which  no  man  can  do  without  the 
Spirit  of  God ;  and  as  there  is  no  condemnation  to 
them  who  are  in  Christ  Jesus,  so  there  is  no  salva- 
tion to  them  who  are  not  in  Christ  Jesus.  For  he 
who  hath  not  the  Spirit  of  Christ  is  none  of  his, 
but  is  a  cast-away."  And  again,  "  'We  have  not 
received  the  spirit  of  bondage  to  fear  any  one ; 
but  we  have  received  '  the  Spirit  of  adoption, 
whereby  we  cry  Abba  Father.'  The  same  Spirit 
certifieth  our  spirits  that  we  are  the  sons  of  God. 
Besides  all  this,  John  saith,  '  He  that  belie veth  in 
God  dwelleth  in  God,  and  God  in  him.'  So  it  is 
impossible  to  believe  in  God  unless  God  dwell  in 
us.  Oh,  great  God  !  what  more  injury  can  be 
done  unto  thee  than  to  mistrust  that  we  have  re- 
ceived thy  Holy  Spirit  by  thy  gift  ?  Thus  may  all 
men  see  their  blindness,  and  whose  servants  they 
be,  as  they  declare  themselves  both  by  their  words 
and  deeds !" 

By  this  time  Dr.  Story  had  become  greatly  ex- 
cited, and  cried  out,  "  Oh,  my  lord,  what  a  heretic 
is  this  same  !     Why  do  you  hear  him  ?     Send  him 


mCHAllD    WOODMAN.  181 

to  prison  to  his  fellows  in  the  Marshalsea,  and  they 
shall  be  dispatched  within  these  twelve  days." 
^^  When  I  heard  him  say  so,"  says  Woodman,  from 
whose  recital  of  his  last  examinations  this  account 
is  taken,  "  I  rejoiced  greatly  in  my  heart,  desiring 
God,  if  it  were  his  will,  to  keep  him  in  that  mind ; 
for  I  looked  surely  to  have  gone  to  the  Bishop  of 
London's  coal-house,  or  to  Lollard's  tower;  but  it 
pleased  God  to  put  it  in  their  hearts  to  send  m&  to 
the  Marshalsea,  amongst  our  brethren,  and  my  old 
prison  fellows:  so  mercifully  hath  God  dealt  with 
me,  in  easing  me  of  my  burden  that  I  looked  for." 
They  observed  his  satisfaction,  and  the  bishop 
said,  "  Methinks  he  is  not  afraid  of  the  prison ;" 
to  which  Woodman  replied,  "No,  I  thank  the 
living  God."  This  again  raised  Story's  savage 
temper,  and  he  said,  "  This  is  a  heretic  indeed : 
he  hath  the  exact  terms  of  all  heretics,  '  The  living 
God  !'  I  pray  you  are  there  dead  Gods,  that  you 
say  the  living  God?"  Woodman  mildly  asked  in 
reply,  "Be  you  angry  with  me  because  I  speak 
the  words  which  are  written  in  the  Bible  ?"  "Bib- 
ble-babble,  bibble-babble,"  said  the  dignified  di- 
vine, adding,  "  there  is  no  such  word  written  in 
all  the  Bible."  "  Then  I  am  much  to  blame  if  it 
be  not  so  written,"  said  Woodman,  and  quoted 
texts  in  support  of  his  assertion.  Chichester  con- 
fessed that  it  was  so  written,  and  that  it  was  the 
truth  ;  but  added  that  such  was  the  language  of  all 
heretics.  He  was  supported  by  Story,  who  sagely 
said,  "  My  lord,  I  will  tell  you  a  heretic  by  his 
words,  because  I  have  been  more  used  to  them 

16 


182  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

than  you  have  been ;  that  is  they  will  say  '  the 
Lord,'  and  '  We  praise  God,'  and  *  The  living  God.' 
By  these  words  you  shall  know  a  heretic."  "  All 
these  words,"  replied  Woodman,  "  are  written  for 
our  learning,  and  we  are  commanded  by  the  pro- 
phet to  use  them  daily,  as  thus,  '  The  Lord's  name 
be  praised,  from  the  rising  up  of  the  sun,  even  to 
the  going  down  of  the  same,'  Also,  as  many  as 
feaV  the  Lord  say  always,  '  The  Lord  be  praised.'  " 

After  a  little  more  railing.  Dr.  Story  went  off'  to 
mass ;  and  then  the  bishop  said  to  Woodman,  ''  I 
would  not  have  you  use  such  speeches  as  you  do, 
as  'the  Lord  be  praised,'  and  'the  living  God,' 
with  such  like  words.  Can  you  not  say  as  well, 
our  Lord,  or  our  God,  as  otherwise  ?"  Woodman, 
after  declaring  that  he  could  not  see  how  he  could 
deserve  to  be  censured  for  using  the  plain  language 
of  Scripture,  added  "It  seemeth  to  me  that  you 
mistrust  that  I  believe  not  as  you  do."  "  Yes, 
that  is  my  meaning,  indeed,"  said  the  bishop.  "I 
believe  in  the  living  God,"  repeated  Woodman; 
"  if  you  do  not  so,  then  our  belief  is  not  alike,  in- 
deed. But  if  it  please  you  to  examine  me  on  any 
particular  matter  now,  I  will  make  you  answer 
thereto  by  God's  help." 

The  bishop  then  proceeded  to  charge  Woodman 
and  his  friends  with  erring  from  the  church ;  and 
in  proof  of  it  showed  him  a  great  bundle  of  writ- 
ings; which,  as  soon  as  Woodman  saw,  he  ac- 
knowledged to  be  his  own,  which  had  been  pri- 
vately stolen  from  his  house  by  the  sheriff^'s  men. 
They  contained  his  examinations  and  discussions 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  183 

during  his  former  imprisonment.  He  expressed 
his  gladness  that  the  bishop  might  now  see,  under 
his  own  hand,  a  full  statement  both  of  what  had 
been  said  and  what  had  been  done  against  him, 
referring  him  to  the  parties  named  there  for  a  con- 
firmation of  its  truth. 

Then  followed  a  very  long  conversation,  in 
which  the  bishop  mar.ifested  a  spirit  so  different 
from  that  of  his  brethren  in  general,  that  if  he  was 
sincere  in  it,  his  mind  must  have  been  ill  at  ease , 
under  the  burden  of  such  companionship  in  evil. 
Gently,  kindly,  and  candidly  he  both  spoke  and 
listened,  as  one  who  was  far  from  desiring  to  turn 
away  his  ears  from  the  truth ;  and  even  admitted, 
with  evident  satisfaction,  Woodman's  refutation 
of  all  the  false  charges  against  him.  Having 
cleared  himself,  the  martyr  thus  spoke, — "Where- 
fore look  ye  to  it,  for  I  am  now  in  your  hands,  and 
you  ought  to  be  a  house  of  defence  against  mine 
enemies;  for  if  you  suffer  them  to  kill  me,  my 
blood  shall  be  required  at  your  hands.  If  you  can 
find  in  me  any  just  cause  of  death  by  God's  word, 
you  may  condemn  me  yourself,  and  not  offend 
God.  Wherefore  look  to  it ;  the  matter  is  weighty ; 
deliver  me  not  into  their  hands,  and  look  to  be  so 
discharged."  Chichester  told  him  that  he  was  not 
3^et  fully  invested  with  the  authority  of  his  office, 
but  he  would  do  what  he  could  for  him. 

They  then  entered  on  the  question,  whether  or 
no  St.  Paul  was  married,  and  Woodman  proved 
that  he  was  not ;  speaking  very  fully  on  the  sub- 
ject, in  a  way  which  seemed  to  please  the  bishop, 


184  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

who  said  lie  was  very  glad  to  have  heard  hira  so 
speak,  and  warmly  repeated  his  assurance  of  a  sin- 
cere wish  to  serve  him.  Woodman  told  him  that 
he  was  willing  to  renounce  anything  that  he  held, 
which  could  be  proved  contrary  to  God's  word. 
"And  the  truth  is,"  continued  he,  I  have  talked 
with  a  dozen  priests  at  the  least,  since  I  was  de- 
livered out  of  prison,  of  certain  matters,  and  they 
have  not  been  able  to  certify  me  in  anything  that 
I  have  asked  them  ;  and  therefore  they  have  com- 
plained of  me  to  the  sheriff  and  justices,  making 
tales  and  lies  to  turn  me  to  displeasure,  as  much 
as  in  them  lieth.  I  promise  [assure]  you  that 
there  are  as  many  unlearned  priests  in  your  dio- 
cese as  in  any  one  diocese  in  England,  so  I  think ; 
the  more  is  it  to  be  lamented."  The  bishop's 
answer  was  much  to  his  honor, — "  I  promise  [as- 
sure] you  I  do  much  lament  it  myself,  for  I  hear 
no  less ;  but  it  is  true  as  you  say.  I  would  I  could 
remedy  it,  but  I  cannot ;  but  I  will'  do  the  best 
that  I  can  when  I  come  into  the  country  ;  and  I 
will  be  glad  to  talk  with  you  some  other  time, 
when  I  shall  be  somewhat  better  at  ease.  Yoa 
see,  I  am  very  tender  [out  of  health]  now,  as  I 
have  been  this  half  year  and  more.  Come  to  din- 
ner; our  dinner  is  ready.  I  counsel  you  not  to 
tarry  for  any  great  cheer  that  you  shall  have ;  nor 
would  I  that  you  should  think  I  go  about  to  win 
you  with  my  meat;  but  you  are  welcome  with 
all  my  heart ;  come,  sit  down." 

After    enjoying    a    plentiful    dinner   with    the 
bishop,  in  company  with  a  merchant  and  3ne  of 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  185 

the  sherift^'s  officers  who  guarded  him,  he  was  told 
by  the  bishop  that  he  must  deliver  him  to  Story's 
man,  but  that  he  would  soon  send  for  him  again, 
and  prayed  God  he  might  do  him  good.  Wood- 
man begged  that  he  might  have  nothing  to  do 
with  Story,  requesting  the  bishop  to  examine  him 
himself.  They  then  began  to  discuss  the  subject 
of  the  sacraments,  of  which  Woodman  would  ac- 
knowledge but  two ;  and  the  bishop  engaging  to 
convince  him  by  God's  word  that  there  were  seven, 
kindly  bid  him  farewell. 

Thus  does  the  bold  and  faithful  Baptist  conclude 
this  part  of  his  narrative  : — "  And  so  I  was  brought 
me  to  the  Marshalsea,  where  I  now  am  merry — 
God  be  praised  therefor — looking  for  judgment  of 
my  flesh,  for  they  intend  to  dispatch  me  shortly, 
if  God  will  give  them  leave ;  but  He  hath  their 
hearts  in  his  hand,  and  they  can  do  nothing  to  me 
but  as  he  will  give  them  leave.  Wherefore  I  com- 
mit my  cause  to  God  only,  and  I  am  sure  there 
shall  not  one  hair  of  my  head  perish  without  my 
heavenly  Father's  will,  though  I  bide  [endure] 
never  so  much  trouble.  Job  perished  not  for  all 
his  trouble,  though  God  gave  the  devil  leave  to 
trouble  him  in  divers  and  many  ways,  as  God  hath 
suffered  his  members  to  trouble  and  try  me  divers 
and  many  ways,  I  praise  God.  They  shall  as  little 
prevail  against  my  faith,  I  have  no  mistrust,  as  the 
devil  prevailed  against  Job,  whatsoever  they  do 
with  my  goods,  body,  or  life.  For  he  who  kept 
Job  in  all  his  trouble  neither  slumbereth  nor  sleep- 
ethj  but  keepeth  me  and  all  his  elect,  that  whether 
1&^ 


186  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

we  live  or  die  it  shall  be  to  the  praise  and  o;;lorv  of 
God.  For  if  we  live,  we  live  at  the  Lord's  will ; 
and  if  we  die,  we  die  at  the  Lord's  will ;  so  whether 
we  live  or  die  we  are  the  Lord's — blessed  be  his 
name. 

"-  Wherefore,  dear  brethren  and  sisters,  to  whom 
this  mj  writing  shall  come,  be  of  good  cheer,  and 
fear  not  what  man  can  do  unto  you,  for  they  can 
but  kill  the  body ;  but  fear  him  who  hath  power 
to  kill  both  body  and  soul.  And  yet  once  again  I 
bid  you  be  of  good  cheer,  for  the  sheriff,  with  di- 
vers other  gentlemen  and  priests,  when  I  was  at 
the  sheriff's  house,  said  to  me,  that  all  the  heretics 
in  the  country  hung  on  me,  as  the  people  did  in 
times  past  upon  St.  Augustine,  or  St.  Ambrose,  or 
such  like.  Wherefore,  said  they,  look  well  on  it ; 
you  have  a  great  thing  to  answer  for.  To  the  which 
I  answered,  I  pray  God  to  lay  nothing  more  to  my 
charge  than  he  will  do  for  heresy,  as  I  am  sure  he 
will  not ;  for  He  hath  set  my  sins  as  far  from  me 
as  it  is  from  the  east  to  the  west,  so  that  I  am  sure 
they  shall  never  come  near  me  any  more.  Yea, 
and  by  that  they  call  heresy  we  serve  God.  And 
I  am  sure  that  there  is  no  man  or  woman  that 
hangeth  on  me,  but  on  God. 

''  But  such  are  their  imaginations  and  thoughts, 
that  if  they  might  win  me  to  them,  they  should 
win  a  great  many  likewise.  And  thinking  to  kill 
me  if  they  cannot  win  me,  as  I  trust  in  God,  and 
am  sure  they  never  shall,  by  God's  grace,  if  it  were 
possible  for  them  to  kill  me  ten  times ;  for  I  am  so 
linked  to  Christ  in  a  chain  by  faith,  that  it  is  im- 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  187 

possible  for  men  to  loose  us  asunder,  neither  for 
life  nor  death,  I  praise  my  Lord  God  therefor.  No 
doubt  their  full  intent  and  purpose  is  to  kill  me, 
thinking  thereby  to  make  others  afraid;  which 
death  of  my  body  were  best  of  all  for  me,  if  God 
was  so  pleased.  But  if  I  may  live  for  the  comfort 
of  others,  his  name  be  praised.  I  know  what  he 
can  do,  but  what  he  will  do  I  know  not.  But  if 
death  be  offered  me,  so  that  I  cannot  refuse  it 
without  displeasing  God,  I  trust  in  God  I  shall  not 
offend  my  brethren  in  receiving  death,  but  shall 
rather  be  an  occasion  of  strengthening  their  faith, 
by  choosing  and  receiving  it,  and  that  with  joy. 
For  as  Christ  hath  given  his  life  for  us,  so  ought 
we  to  give  our  lives  for  the  defence  of  the  gospel^ 
and  comfort  of  our  brethren.  And  whereas  the 
bishop  saith  he  will  prove  seven  sacraments,  be 
you  out  of  doubt  he  shall  never  be  able  to  do  it, 
no  more  than  he  hath  proved  other  arguments 
with  me  already.  Thus  fare  ye  well.  Prom  the 
Marshalsea,  where  I  now  am,  as  a  sheep  appointed 
to  be  slain.     God  be  praised  therefor." 

Of  all  the  English  army  of  martyrs,  Richard 
Woodman  seems  to  have  the  most  resembled  Mar- 
tin Luther  in  the  cast  of  his  natural  character,  and 
the  peculiarity  of  his  spiritual  gifts.  As  we  pro- 
ceed in  our  narrative  we  shall  find  him  applying 
the  hammer  of  God's  word  to  the  hardened  iron 
which  formed  the  sinews  of  the  necks  of  his  ene- 
mies, with  as  much  force  and  as  little  ceremony  as 
he  was  wont  to  exercise  w^hen  working  the  metal 
in   his  worldly   calling.     In   archdeacon   Philpot, 


188  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

this  b'  Idness  of  speech,  and  energy  of  thought, 
appeared  under  the  polish  of  rank,  education,  learn- 
ing, and  ecclesiastical  dignity ;  in  Woodman  it 
stands  forth  rough  and  unmitigated,  save  by  the 
subduing  influence  of  true  piety.  Even  this,  how- 
ever, in  his  case,  added  emphasis  to  the  impulse 
of  holy  indignation,  when  he  looked  upon  those 
whose  hearts  were  really,  as  he  has  before  expressed 
it,  made  drunk  by  the  blood  of  the  saints  and  mar- 
tyrs of  Jesus ;  the  blood  of  men  by  whom  he  had 
been  taught  the  way  of  salvation,  whose  dungeons 
he  had  shared,  whose  sufferings  he  had  witnessed, 
and  the  smoke  of  whose  cruel  burnings  had  hardly 
ceased  to  darken  and  infect  the  air.  Strong  must 
have  been  the  power  of  that  grace  which  withheld 
from  bitter  revilings  the  tongue  of  one  whose 
natural  courage  shrunk  from  nothing ;  and  who 
was  so  keenly  sensible  of  the  wrongs  inflicted  on 
his  murdered  pastors,  and  the  blasphemous  dis- 
honor heaped  upon  the  name  of  his  God ! 

Eichard  Woodman,  the  humble  ironmonger  of 
Sussex,  made  more  than  one  mitred  head  cower 
beneath  his  righteous  rebukes;  and  forced  them 
to  wince  under  the  scornful  irony  which  touched 
the  idolatrous  priests  of  Baal  from  the  inspired 
lips  of  Elijah.  We  do  not  intend  to  soften  down 
any  part  of  the  recital ;  but  to  give  it,  with  as  few 
curtailments  as  our  limits  will  allow,  in  the  very 
words  of  our  martyr. 

Woodman's  second  examination  was  in  the 
house  of  the  bishop  of  Chichester,  where  Story  had 
sent   him.     He  returned   the   bishop's   courteous 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  189 

greeting  with  the  most  respectful  salutation  he 
could  render  ;  at  the  same  time  thanking  him  for 
his  former  kindness.  Chichester  requested  that 
he  would  be  brief  in  his  discourse,  as  the  length 
of  their  former  conversation  had  impaired  his 
health. 

The  seven  sacraments  were  proposed  for  discus- 
sion ;  and  on  Woodman  denying  five  of  them,  and 
requiring  the  bishop  to  prove  them  from  Scrip- 
ture, he  became  greatly  excited,  swearing  in  a  very 
coarse  and  shocking  manner;  for  which  his  pri- 
soner reminded  him  that  he  was  not  setting  a  good 
example  to  his  flock.  Chichester  seems  to  have 
been  exposed  to  evil  influence  since  their  last  meet- 
ing ;  for  when  Woodman  justified  his  rebuke  by 
quoting  the  command  to  reprove  an  offending  bro- 
ther, he  and  the  priests  pronounced  him  past  cure  ; 
and  the  bishop  desired  Dr.  Story  to  be  called,  as 
he  would  talk  no  more  with  him  ;  adding  that 
the  company  of  his  fellows  in  the  Marshalsea  had 
made  him  worse  than  he  was ;  for  before  he  went 
there  he  had  some  hope  of  him.  After  some 
more  hard  speeches,  the  bishop  a  little  moderated 
his  displeasure,  and  consented  to  proceed  in  the 
matter  of  the  sacraments. 

The  subject  on  which  they  began  was  that  of 
matrimony  J  where  the  bishop  fortified  himself  with 
the  word  saeramentum  used  in  the  Latin  version  ; 
and  Woodman  holding  to  the  English  rendering, 
"a  great  mystery,"  as  typifying  the  union  of 
Christ  with  his  church,  showed,  very  beautifully, 
that  the   '^  mystery,"   or   unseen   thing,  was  the 


190  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

union  of  heart,  invisible  to  the  eye  ;  whereas  a  sa- 
crament was  a  visible  sign.  He  asked  the  bishop, 
" My  lord,  I  pray  you  w^hat  is  a  sacrament  ?"  "It 
is  the  sign  of  a  holy  thing,"  replied  the  bishop, 
who  had  parried  the  last  argument  by  insisting 
that  the  ceremony  being  seen,  and  the  man  and 
woman  also  seen,  it  was  not  an  invisible  mystery. 
"Woodman,  then,  on  this  new  ground  of  the  bishop's 
choosing,  disproved  his  assertion,  saying,  "  There 
need  not  be  a  sign  of  a  holy  thing  where  the  holy 
thing  itself  is.  Matrimony  is  a  holy  thing  in 
itself,  and  is  ended  outwardly,  and  needs  no  more 
signs  but  themselves ;  wherefore  it  cannot  be  a  sa- 
crament as  others  are."  To  this  the  bishop  re- 
turned a  singularly  ridiculous  answer  : — "Lo,  now 
you  speak  against  yourself;  and  for  an  example, 
I  came  by  an  hosier's,  and  there  hangeth  a  pair  of 
hose,  that  are  to  sell  within."  At  this  the  priests 
chuckled,  and  Woodman  answered  indignantly, 
he  wondered  they  were  not  ashamed  of  themselves. 
When  taunted  by  the  priests  for  being  angry,  he 
replied,  "I  am  not  angry,  but  I  am  earnest,  I  tell 
you,  to  see  your  blindness  and  folly.  I  talked  of 
the  Scriptures  that  are  written,  and  they  are  God's 
word,  to  prove  my  matter  true  by ;  and  you  will 
prove  your  matter  trne  by  a  pair  of  hose.  And  as 
well  can  you  prove  it  by  that,  as  by  God's 
word."  "Why,"  said  a  priest,  "is  there  nothing 
true  but  what  is  written  in  the  Bible  ?"  Wood- 
man replied,  "  St.  Paul  saith  to  the  Galatians,  "If 
an  angel  came  from  heaven,  and  holdeth  any  other 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  191 

doctrine,  than  may  be  proved  by  God's  word,  hold 
him  accursed;  and  so  do  I  tell  you  plainly." 

The  priest  resumed,  "Here  is  a  Testament  in 
my  hand ;  if  I  hurl  it  in  the  fire,  do  I  burn  God's 
word  or  not  ?  I  will  buy  a  new  one  for  sixteen 
pence."  Woodman  a^iswered,  "I  say  you  have 
burned  God's  word ;  he  that  would  burn  a  Testa- 
ment willingly,  would  burn  God  himself  if  he 
could;  for  he  and  his  word  are  as  one."  They 
made  a  great  jest  of  this;  and  he  continued, 
"  Laugh  on.  Your  laughing  will  be  turned  to 
weeping,  and  all  such  joy  will  be  turned  to  mourn- 
ing, if  you  repent  not  with  speed."  Chichester, 
to  cover  the  folly  of  his  priests,  said,  "Why,  if 
my  counting-house  were  full  of  books,  and  if  my 
house  were  by  chance  on  fire,  and  so  burned,  is 
God's  word  burned?"  "'No,  my  lord,  because 
they  were  burned  against  your  will ;  but  yet  if  you 
should  burn  them  willingly,  or  think  it  well,  or 
not  be  sorry  for  it,  you  burn  God's  word  as  well 
as  he.  For  he  that  is  not  sorry  for  a  shrewd  turn, 
[an  evil  thing,]  doth  allow  it  to  be  good." 

Chichester  remarking  that  he  had  little  learning, 
then  asked  him  what  St.  Paul  meant  by  the  pas- 
sage, "We  have  an  altar  whereof  you  may  not 
eat."  He  answered,  "  There  is  no  man  so  foolish 
as  to  eat  stones,  I  trow."  This  greatly  annoyed 
the  bishop,  who  said  it  was  a  plain  mockery ;  but 
Woodman  reminded  him  that  he  had  just  accused 
him  of  having  no  knowledge  or  learning,  or  un- 
derstanding, wherefore  he  ought  to  make  things 
more  plain  to  him,  and  not  ask  him  such  dark 


192  BAPTIST    MARTYRS.  . 

questions,  and  blame  him  too.  The  bishop  de- 
clared that  the  greatest  fool  in  his  house  would 
luiderstand  his  meaning,  and  calling  by  his  name 
a  servant  who  stood  a  little  way  off,  "  Come  hither; 
I  say  to  thee,  thou  shalt  not  eat  of  this  table. 
What  do  I  mean  thereby  ?V  "  Forsooth,  my  lord, 
you  would  not  have  me  to  eat  of  this  table,"  lay- 
ing his  hand  upon  it,  answered  the  man.  This 
made  all  the  party  laugh ;  including  Woodman, 
who  said,  "  He  hath  expounded  the  matter  almost 
as  well  as  I."  "  He  meaneth  well  enough,"  said 
the  bishop,  "  if  you  would  understand  him. 
Answer  me  again,  to  make  it  more  plain.  I  say, 
thou  shalt  not  eat  of  this  table.  What  mean  I 
thereby?"  "Forsooth,  you  would  not  have  me 
eat  this  table."  At  this  they  laughed  again  ;  and 
the  bishop,  almost  angry,  said,  "  He  meaneth  that 
I  would  not  have  him  eat  of  the  meat  that  is  set 
upon  the  table.  How  sayest  thou,  dost  thou  not 
mean  so  ?"  The  man  replied,  "  Yes,  forsooth,  my 
lord,  that  was  my  meaning  indeed;"  and  Wood- 
man observed  that  he  had  answered  according  to 
the  prompting;  showing  that  he  could  have  re- 
plied to  the  j&rst  question. 

They  then  passed  on  to  the  sacrament  of  the 
altar.  Chichester  asked  Woodman  what  he  said 
to  it.  He  replied,  "  You  mean  the  sacrament  of 
the  body  and  blood  of  Jesus  Christ?"  "I  mean 
the  sacrament  of  the  altar,  and  so  I  say."  "  You 
mean  Christ  to  be  the  altar,  do  you  not?"  asked 
Woodman.  "  I  mean  the  sacrament  of  the  altar 
xu  the  church.     What!  is  it  so  strange  to  you?" 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  193 

"It  is  strange  to  me,  indeed,  if  yoii  mean  the  altar 
of  stone,"  returned  Woodman.  "  It  is  that  altar 
which  I  mean,"  said  the  bishop.  Woodman  re- 
marked that  he  understood  not  the  altar  so ;  and 
craving  permission  to  show  his  belief,  brought 
some  Scriptures  to  prove  that  Christ,  in  the  midst 
of  his  assembled  people,  is  the  true  altar,  where 
Christians,  at  peace  with  each  other  and  all  the 
w^orld,  should  come  and  offer  their  prayers  to 
God. 

After  hearing  him  to  the  end,  Chichester  said, 
"  Do  you  understand  the  offering  and  the  altar  so  ? 
I  never  heard  any  man  understand  it  so  ;  no,  not 
Luther,  the  great  heretic,  who  was  condemned  by 
a  general  council,  and  his  picture  burnt."  To 
which  Woodman  shrewdly  replied,  "If  he  were 
an  heretic,  I  think  he  understood  it  not  so  indeed ; 
but  I  am  sure  all  Christians  ought  to  understand 
it  so."  The  bishop  maintained  his  own  view, 
which  was  quite  a  Jewish  one ;  and  when  Wood- 
man showed  him  so,  he  said,  "Who  shall  be  judge 
betwixt  us  in  this  matter?"  Woodman  replied, 
"  The  twelfth  of  John  declareth  who  shall  be  judge 
in  the  last  day."  "You  mean,"  said  Chichester, 
"  The  word  shall  judge  the  word.  How  can  that 
be?"  Woodman  replied,  "St.  Peter  saith  the 
Scripture  hath  no  private  interpretation ;  but  one 
Scripture  must  be  understood  by  another."  He 
also  said  "  the  true  church  of  God  is  able  to  dis- 
cuss all  doubts ;  to  whom  I  refer  it."  The  bishop, 
of  course,  took  this  as  an  admission  in  favor  of  his 
false  church. 

17 


1&4  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Woodman  asked  what  he  offered  up  on  his 
altar?  he  said,  ''We  offer  up  in  the  blessed  sacra- 
ment of  the  altar,  the  body  of  Christ  to  pacify  the 
wrath  of  God  the  Father."  At  that  they  all  took 
off  their  caps  in  honor  of  the  idol.  Woodman 
proved  from  Paul's  epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  that 
the  one  offering  of  Christ  was  sufficient;  and 
added,  ^'  as  far  as  I  can  see,  you  are  priests  after 
the  order  of  Aaron,  who  offered  up  sacrifice  for 
their  own  sins,  and  the  sins  of  the  people  ?"  The 
bishop  said,  "  ITo ;  they  were  priests  after  the 
order  of  Melchizedek,  who  offered  bread  and  wine 
in  remembrance,  to  signify  the  giving  of  Christ's 
body  in  bread  and  wine,  w^hich  he,  at  the  last  sup- 
per, gave  to  his  disciples,  and  ordered  to  be  used 
to  the  end  of  the  world."  Woodman  liked  this 
exposition.  He  said  the  bishop  had  made  it  very 
plain  to  him,  that  as  Christ  was  the  end  of  all 
sacrifice,  so  was  he  the  beginning  of  the  sacra- 
ments, willing  them  to  be  used  in  remembrance  of 
him  to  the  world's  end.  The  bishop,  however, 
insisted  on  more  than  a  remembrance;  on  tran- 
substantiation ;  but  he  desired  Woodman  to  be 
brief. 

The  martyr  then  said,  "  My  lord,  if  you  will 
answer  me  to  one  sacrament,  I  will  answer  you  to 
another.  If  you  say  the  w^ords  of  baptism  over 
the  water,  and  there  be  no  child  there,  is  it  true 
baptism?"  ^'N'o;  there  must  be  the  water,  the 
word,  and  the  child;  and  then  it  is  a  baptism." 
"Very  well,"  rejoined  Woodman  ;  "then  if  a  child 
be  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Father  and  of  the 


RICITArtD    WOODMAlSr.  195 

Son,  it  is  not  truly  baptized  ?"  "N"o;  the  child 
must  be  baptized  in  the  name  of  the  Father,  and 
of  the  Son,  and  of  the  IToly  Ghost,  or  else  it  is  not 
truly  baptized."  ''Then,"  said  Woodman,  ''there 
may  be  nothing  added,  or  taken  away  from  the 
sacraments,  may  there?"  "Is'o,"  replied  the 
bishop.  "  Now,  my  lord,  I  will  answer  to  you,  if 
it  please  you."  "  Well,"  asked  the  bishop,  "how 
say  you  ?  '  Take,  eat,  this  is  my  body,'  is  it  not 
Christ's  body  as  soon  as  the  words  are  said?" 
"My  lord,"  replied  Woodman,  "I  will  answer 
you  by  your  own  words,  that  you  answered  me. 
The  w^ater,  the  word,  and  the  child,  you  say,  all 
these  together  make  baptism :  the  bread,  the  wine 
and  the  word  make  the  sacrament ;  and  the  eater, 
eating  it  in  true  faith,  maketh  it  his  body.  Here 
I  prove  it  is  not  Christ's  body  but  to  the  faithful 
receiver.  For  he  saith,  '  Take,  eat,  this  is  my 
body.'  He  called  it  not  his  body  before  eating, 
but  after  eating.  St.  Augustine  said,  'Believe, 
and  thou  hast  eaten.'  And  St.  John  said,  '  He 
that  believeth  in  God,  dwelleth  in  God, ,  and  God 
in  him;'  wherefore  it  is  impossible  to  dwell 
in  God,  and  to  eat  his  body,  without  a  true 
faith." 

One  of  the  priests  said,  "  Then  the  faith  of  the 
receiver  maketh  it  his  body,  and  not  his  word,  by 
your  saying.  I  pray  you,  what  did  Judas  eat." 
Woodman  replied,  "  Judas  did  eat  the  sacrament 
of  Christ,  and  the  devil  withal,"  "  He  did  eat  the 
body  of  Christ  unworthily,  as  St.  Paul  saith,"  re- 
turned the  priest.     "Nay,"  said  Woodman,  "St. 


196  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Paul  saith  no  such  thing.  He  spoke  not  of  eating 
his  body  unworthily,  but  of  the  sacrament  un- 
worthily. For  he  saith,  '  Whoso  eateth  this  bread, 
and  drinketh  this  cup  unworthily,  eateth  and 
drink eth  his  own  damnation,  because  he  maketh 
no  difference  [discernment]  of  the  Lord's  body ;' 
and  not  because  he  eateth  the  Lord's  body.  If 
Judas  did  eat  Christ's  body,  it  must  needs  follow 
that  Judas  is  saved ;  for  Christ  saith  in  the  sixth 
of  John,  '"Whosoever  eateth  my  flesh,  and  drinketh 
my  blood,  hath  eternal  life  ;  and  I  will  raise  him 
up  at  the  last  day.'  " 

On  this  the  priests  and  bishop  agreed  that  it 
was  lost  labor  to  talk  any  more  v/ith  him  ;  so  the 
bishop  demanded  a  final  answer  as  to  his  belief  in 
the  matter,  and  received  this  reply : — ''  I  do  believe 
that  if  I  come  to  receive  the  sacrament  of  the  body 
and  blood  of  Christ  truly  ministered,  believing 
that  Christ  was  born  for  me,  and  that  he  suffered 
death  for  me,  and  that  I  shall  be  saved  from  my 
sins  by  his  blood-shedding;  and  so  receive  the 
sacrament  in  that  remembrance,  then  I  do  believe 
that  I  receive  wholly  Christ,  God  and  man,  mysti- 
cally by  faith.  This  is  my  belief."  Chichester 
observed,  "  Why  then,  it  is  no  body  without  faith ; 
God's  word  is  of  no  force,  as  you  count  it."  ''My 
lord,"  he  replied,  "I  have  told  you  my  mind  with- 
out dissimulation ;  and  more  you  get  not  of  me, 
without  you  will  talk  with  me  by  the  Scriptures ; 
and  if  you  will  do  so,  I  will  begin  anew  with  you, 
and  prove  it  more  plainly ;  three  or  four  manner 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  197 

of  ways,  that  you  shall  not  say  nay  to  that  I  have 
said  yourself." 

"When  he  said  this  they  began  to  laugh  heartily, 
saying  to  each  other,  "  This  is  an  heretic  indeed ; 
it  is  time  he  were  burned."  Their  ridicule  and 
malignity  moved  him  to  give  them  a  very  severe 
rebuke ;  '^  Judge  not  lest  ye  be  judged  ;  for  as  you 
judge  me,  you  shall  be  judged  yourselves.  For 
what  you  call  heresy,  I  serve  God  truly  with,  as 
you  all  shall  well  know,  when  you  shall  be  in  hell, 
and  shall  be  compelled  to  say,  from  pain,  'This 
was  the  man  that  we  jested  on,  and  whose  talk  we 
called  foolishness,  and  his  end  to  be  without  honor ; 
but  we  now  see  how  he  is  counted  among  the  saints 
of  God,  and  we  are  punished.'  These  words  shall 
you  say,  being  in  hell,  if  you  repent  not  with 
speed,  if  you  consent  to  the  shedding  of  my  blood. 
Wherefore  look  to  it;  I  give  you  counsel."  A 
priest  taxed  him  with  being  angry  ;  and  began  to 
repeat  some  words  which  he  had  spoken  against 
their  idols,  and  in  answer  to  bishop  Stephen  Gar- 
diner. He  answered,  "  That  I  said,  I  said ;  and 
where  you  said  I  was  angry,  I  take  God  to  my  re- 
cord that  I  am  not,  but  am  zealous  for  the  truth, 
and  speak  out  of  the  Spirit  of  God  with  cheerful- 
ness." The  priest,  with  marks  of  contempt,  mock- 
ingly repeated,  "  The  Spirit  of  God !  think  you 
that  you  have  the  Spirit  of  God  ?"  "  I  believe 
surely,"  answered  the  martyr,  "that  I  have  the 
Spirit  of  God,  I  praise  God  therefor ;  and  you  are 
deceivers,  mockers,  and  scorners  before  God,  and 
are  the  children  of  Satan,  all  of  you,  as  far  as  I  can 
17* 


198  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

see."  Here  Story  came  in,  and  after  railing  as 
usual,  advised  the  bishop  to  have  nothing  more  to 
do  with  him,  and  ordered  him  back  to  the  prison 
without  farther  question.  When  thej  had  all  left 
to  receive  a  party,  who  were  come  to  dine  with 
the  bishop,  a  priest  began  to  flatter  Woodman, 
urging  him  to  recant ;  but  he  met  with  no  success ; 
and  after  a  few  minutes,  he  was  conducted  again 
to  the  Marshalsea  prison. 

Soon  after  this,  the  marshal  came  to  the  prison, 
and  questioned  Woodman  as  to  his  having  been 
abroad,  speaking  seditious  words,  both  of  which 
he  so  clearly  disproved,  that  the  officer  owned  that 
it  must  be  a  false  report ;  and  then  took  him  away 
for  another  examination,  to  lord  Montague's  house, 
in  Southwark,  where  Dr.  Langdale,  the  bishop's 
chaplain,  was  waiting  for  him.  A  very  long  con- 
versation ensued ;  which  Langdale  began,  by 
charging  him  with  forsaking  the  faith  of  his 
fathers,  and  so  forth.  Woodman  answered  wisely 
and  scripturally,  and  the  doctor,  after  blaming 
him  for  quoting  the  Bible  too  much,  tried  by  the 
assurance  of  much  good  will,  to  induce  him  to 
speak  his  mind  freely.  The  martyr,  in  a  strain  of 
admirable  prudence,  mingled  with  his  natural 
frankness,  told  him  that  he  knew  not  how  to  trust 
his  fair  words,  when  he  could  not  trust  his  own 
father  and  brother,  and  others  who  had  been  his 
familiar  friends  ; — that  Christ  had  bade  him  to  be 
wise  as  a  serpent,  and  as  innocent  as  the  dove, — 
and  also  to  take  heed  of  men,  for  they  would  be- 
tray.    He  added,  that  the  doctor's  dislike  to  his 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  199 

quoting  Scripture  made  him  suspect  iiim ;  there- 
fore he  must  not  be  angry  if  he  found  him  circum- 
spect in  his  answer;  ''  For,"  said  he,  ''.it  shall  not  be 
said,  by  God's  help,  that  I  run  wilfully  into  mine 
enemies'  hands ;  and  yet,  I  praise  God,  that  my  life 
is  not  dear  unto  myself,  but  is  dear  with  God; 
wherefore  I  will  do  to  the  uttermost  I  can  to  keep  it." 
Langdale  then  made  a  misstatement  of  what  had 
taken  place  before  Woodman's  last  apprehension, 
which  he  very  calmly  and  soberly  answered,  fully 
showing  in  what  he  had  been  wrongfully  charged. 
Woodman  was  next  charged  with  baptizing  his 
child,  and  in  the  same  breath  with  leaving  it  un- 
baptized.  He  indignantly  proved  the  falsehood 
of  this  strange  contradiction ;  and  referring  to  a 
part  of  Langdale 's  speech,  where  he  had  said  that 
if  the  child  died  before  baptism  it  must  have 
been  eternally  lost,  he  asked  him,  "How  think 
you  ?  are  all  condemned  who  receive  not  the  out- 
ward sign  of  baptism?"  "Yea,"  said  the  doctor, 
"that  they  be."  Woodman  asked,  "Howproveyou 
that  ?"  Langdale  replied  by  repeating  our  Lord's 
words  which  command  baptism,  assuring  eternal 
life  to  such  as  believe  and  are  baptized,  and  con- 
demnation to  them  who  believe  not.  "  Then,'* 
observed  Woodman,  "  by  your  saying  that  bap- 
tism bringeth  faith;  and  all  that  are  baptized  in 
water  shall  be  saved,  shall  they?"  "Yea,  that 
they  shall,"  replied  the  doctor;  "if  they  die  be- 
fore they  come  to  discretion,  they  should  be  saved 
every  one  of  them  ;  and  all  that  be  not  baptized, 
shall  be  damned,  every  one  of  them." 


2C0  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

This  greatly  roused  "Woodman,  who  exclaimed, 
"  How  dare  you  speak  such  blasphemy  against  God 
and  his,  as  you  do  ?  How  dare  you  for  your  life 
take  upon  you  to  preach,  and  teach  the  people, 
and  understand  not  what  you  say  ?  For  I  protest 
before  God  that  you  understand  not  the  Scriptures, 
but  as  far  as  natural  reason  can  comprehend ;  for 
if  you  did,  you  would  be  ashamed  to  speak  as  you 
do.*'  Langdale  told  him  to  take  heed,  for  he  had 
a  toy  in  his  head  that  would  make  him  despair ; 
and  asked  why  he  reproved  him  as  he  did.  Wood- 
man answered,  "Because  you  blaspheme  God;'* 
and  then  challenged  him  to  prove  his  doctrine  by 
Scripture,  which  made  the  other  turn  pale  and 
tremble. 

Woodman  then  proceeded  to  show  that  the  per- 
dition threatened  was  not  to  them  who  are  not 
baptized,  but  to  such  a^  believe  not ;  quoting  the 
words  of  John,  "  He  that  belie veth  not  is  con- 
demned already,  because  he  believeth  not."  He 
went  on,  "I  dare  not  say,  for  all  the  good  things 
under  heaven,  that  all  they  who  receive  no  material 
baptism  by  water,  shall  be  condemned,  as  you  have 
said ;  yet  I  would  not  that  you  should  gather  from 
these  words  that  I  deny  baptism,  as  you  were  about 
to  lay  to  my  charge,  before  I  had  half  told  out  my 
tale.  But  I  would  not  have  you  nor  any  man,  so 
rash  in  judgment,  to  condemn  the  thing  that  they 
are  not  able  to  prove  by  the  word ;  and  to  make  it 
seem  to  the  simple  that  the  outward  washing  of 
the  water  were  the  cause  of  faith."  "Why,  is  it 
not  so?"  asked  Langdale;  "will  you  deny  it  ?  how 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  201 

say  you,  will  yon  deny  it  ?  I  say  tbe  child  hath  no 
faith  before  it  is  baptized;  and  therefore  the  bap- 
tism bringeth  the  faith.  How  say  you  to  it? 
Make  me  a  plain  answer  to  the  question." 

"ISTow,"  said  Woodman,  "I  see  you  go  about 
nothing  else  but  to  take  advantage  of  my  words. 
But,  by  God's  help,  I  will  answer  you  so  that  you 
shall  well  see  your  sayings  nntrue.  And  yet  I 
will  not  speak  mine  own  words,  but  the  words  of 
the  Holy  Ghost,  out  of  the  mouth  of  the  prophets 
and  apostles;  and  then  ask  them  whether  they 
will  deny  it."  He  then  asked  where  Jacob  was 
baptized  before  he  had  faith ;  alleging  the  passage 
which  speaks  of  his  election  before  his  birth ;  but 
Langdale  parried  this,  as  it  was  before  the  institu- 
tion of  baptism.  He  demanded  an  answer  to  his 
former  question,  observing,  that  Woodman  de- 
nied original  sin,  and  free  will;  "for,"  said  he, 
''if  children  can  be  saved  without  baptism,  it  must 
needs  follow  that  children  have  no  original  sin; 
the  which  is  put  away  in  the  baptizing.  But  I 
think  that  you  know  not  what  original  sin  is,  or 
free  will  either."  Woodman  then  told  him  that 
he  thanked  God,  that  he  thought  he  could  tell 
him  better  than  he  could;  and  then  asked  him, 
"what  free  will  hath  man  to  do  good  of  himself?" 
Langdale  answered,  "  I  say  that  man  hath  as  much 
free  will  as  Adam  had  before  the  fall."  "I  pray 
you,  how  prove  you  that?"  "Thus  I  prove  it," 
saith  the  doctor,  "that  as  sin  entered  into  the 
world,  and  by  the  nature  of  one  that  sinned  all 
became  sinners,  the  which  was  by  Adam ;  so  by 


202  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

the  obedience  of  one  man,  righteousness  came 
upon  all  men  that  had  sinned,  and  set  them  as  free 
as  they  were  before  their  fall ;  the  which  was  by- 
Jesus  Christ.  See  the  fifth  of  the  epistle  to  the 
Romans." 

Woodman  exclaimed,  "  Oh,  what  an  overthrow 
have  you  given  yourself  here  in  original  sin,  and 
yet  you  cannot  see  it !  For,  in  proving  that  we 
have  free  will,  you  have  quite  denied  original  sin. 
For  here  you  have  declared  that  we  are  set  as  free 
by  the  death  of  Christ  as  Adam  was  before  his 
fall;  and  I  am  sure  that  Adam  had  no  original 
sin  before  his  fall.  If  we  are  as  free  now,  as  lie 
was  then,  I  marvel  wherefore  Paul  prayed  thrice 
to  God  to  take  away  the  sting  of  it ;  God  making 
him  answer,  and  saying,  '  My  grace  is  sufficient 
for  thee.'  These  words,  with  divers  others,  prove 
original  sin  in  us ;  but  not  that  it  shall  hurt  God's 
elect  people,  for  his  grace  is  sufficient  for  all  of 
them.  But  you  say  in  one  place  that  it  is  not 
without  baptism  ;  and  in  another  place  you  put  it 
away  quite  by  the  death  of  Christ;  and  in  very 
deed  you  have  spoken  truer  in  the  matter  than 
you  are  aware  of.  For  all  who  believe  in  Christ 
are  baptized  in  the  blood  of  Christ,  that  he  shed 
on  the  cross ;  and  in  the  water  that  he  sweat  for 
pain,  and  putting  away  of  our  sins  at  his  death. 
And  yet  I  say  with  David,  'In  sin  was  I  born,  and 
in  sin  did  my  mother  conceive  me  ;'  but  in  no 
such  sin  as  shall  be  imputed,  because  I  am  born 
of  God  by  faith,  as  John  saith  in  the  third  chapter 
of  his  first  epistle.     Therefore   I  am  blessed,  as 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  203 

eaith  the  thirty-second  psalm,  because  the  Lord 
imputeth  not  my  sin,  and  not  because  I  have  no 
sin ;  but  because  God  hath  not  imputed  my  sins. 
'Not  of  our  own  deserving,  but  of  his  free  mercy, 
he  hath  saved  us.  Where  is  now  your  free  will 
that  you  speak  of?  If  we  have  free  will,  then  our 
salvation  cometh  of  our  own  selves,  and  not  of 
God ;  the  which  is  great  blasphemy  against  God 
and  his  word."  He  quoted  the  apostles  James, 
John,  and  Paul,  and  went  on  to  apply  these  Scrip- 
tures. "  Seeing  then  that  every  good  and  perfect 
gift  cometh  from  above,  and  lighteneth  upon  whom 
it  pleaseth  God,  and  that  he  worketh  in  us  both 
the  will  and  the  deed,  methinks  all  the  rest  of  our 
own  will  is  little  worth,  or  nothing  at  all  unless  it 
be  wickedness." 

Woodman  then  craved  leave  to  answer  to  the 
matter  of  Jacob's  faith,  which  Langdale  had  put 
aside  as  having  nothing  to  do  with  baptism.  The 
doctor  consented,  probably,  as  Woodman  suspected, 
hoping  to  lay  hold  on  some  of  his  words ;  and  he 
proceeded,  "  First  you  may  be  reminded,  yoa  said 
that  if  my  child  had  died  without  baptism,  if  I 
had  been  the  cause  that  it  had  not  been  baptized, 
the  child  should  have  been  damned,  and  I  too. 
How  say  you  ?"  "  Yea,  that  you  should,"  answered 
the  doctor.  Woodman  replied,  "That  is  most 
untrue ;  for  the  prophet  saith,  the  father  shall  not 
bear  the  child's  offences ;  nor  the  child  the  father's 
offences ;  but  the  soul  that  sinneth  shall  die.  What 
could  the  child  have  done  withal,  if  it  had  died 
without  baptism  ?  the  child  could  not  be  blamed. 


204  BAPTIST    MAKTYRS. 

How  say  yon  to  this  ?  And  I  am  snre  that  what 
I  brought  in,  in  the  old  law,  to  prove  that  faith  is 
before  baptism  is  not  disagreeable  unto  the  word. 
For  circumcision  was  a  figure  of  baptism ;  and 
that  I  may  bring  to  prove  baptism  by,  as  well  as 
St.  Peter  did ;  for  he  brought  in  Noah's  flood, 
which  was  a  long  time  before  Jacob  and  Esau,  to 
prove  baptism  ;  saying,  '  While  the  ark  was  a  pre- 
paring, wherein  few,  that  is  eight  souls,  were  saved 
by  water,  like  as  baptism  now  saveth  us ;  not  in 
putting  away  the  filth  of  the  flesh,  but  there  is  a 
good  conscience  consenting  to  God.'  Here  Peter 
proveth  that  water  had  not  saved  I^oah  and  the 
other  seven,  no  more  than  it  saved  all  the  rest,  if 
it  had  not  been  for  their  faith ;  which  faith  now 
saveth  us ;  not  in  putting  away  the  filthy  soil  of 
the  flesh  by  the  washing  of  w^ater,  but  a  good  con- 
science consenting  unto  God. 

"But  you  say,  that  if  they  are  baptized  with  the 
water,  if  they  die  before  they  come  to  the  years  of 
discretion,  they  are  all  saved ;  the  which  St.  Peter 
is  clean  against,  unless  you  grant  that  children  have 
faith  before  they  are  baptized,  l^ow  I  ask  you, 
what  consent  of  conscience  the  children  have,  being 
infants  ?  For  you  say  they  believe  not  before  they 
are  baptized ;  therefore,  then,  they  consent  not  to 
be  baptized,  because  they  believe  not.  And  by 
this  it  followeth  that  none  shall  be  saved,  although 
they  are  baptized.  I  would  fain  see  how  you  can 
answer  this."  Langdale  replied,  "  You  are  the 
most  perverse  man  that  ever  I  knew.  You  know 
not  what  you  say.     The  children  are  baptized  iu 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  205 

their  godfathers'  and  godmothers'  faith,  and  that 
is  the  good  conscience  which  St.  Peter  speaks  of ; 
and  the  christening  is  the  keeping  of  the  law 
which  St.  Paul  speaketh  of,  saying,  '  Ifeither  is  cir- 
cumcision anything,  nor  uncircumcision,  but  the 
keeping  of  the  law.'  Like  as  circumcision  was  the 
keeping  of  the  old  law,  so  is  baptism  the  keeping 
of  the  new  law." 

To  all  this  Woodman  replied,  ''  Ah !  methought 
if  you  talked  with  me,  you  would  be  compelled  to 
bring  in  the  old  law  to  maintain  your  sayings  by ; 
though  you  refused  it  when  I  brought  it  in.  Bat 
yet  it  serveth  not  your  purpose  so  much  as  you 
think  for.  For  here  you  have  confessed  that 
neither  circumcision  availeth,  nor  uncircumcision ; 
the  which  you  have  coupled  with  baptism,  proving 
that  none  of  them  availeth,  but  keeping  the  law  is 
the  whole  thing.  The  which  law  is  kept,  you  say,  by 
the  outward  signs  ;  which  is  not  so  ;  for  'Abraham 
believed  God,  and  that  was  counted  to  him  for 
righteousness,'  and  this  was  before  he  was  circum- 
cised." 

After  saying  a  little  more  on  this  point,  "Wood- 
man asked,  ''Where  you  said  the  children  are 
baptized  in  their  godfathers'  and  godmothers' 
faith,  being  all  unbelievers,  in  what  faith  is  the 
child" baptized  then  ?  In  none  at  all,  by  your  own 
saying."  This  greatly  excited  the  doctor,  who 
exclaimed,  "What!  then  you  would  count  that 
there  are  very  few  believers,  if  there  be  not  one  of 
three  that  believeth.  You  enter  into  judgment 
against  the  people.     Belike  you  think  there  are 

18 


206  BAPTIST    MAETYRS. 

none  tliat  believe  well,  unless  they  are  of  your 
mind.  Indeed,  then  Christ's  flock  were  a  very 
little  flock!"  Woodman  replied,  "Indeed,  these 
are  Christ's  own  words,  in  Luke  the  twefth,  ^  Fear 
not  little  flock,'  the  which  we  may  see  to  be  very 
true.  Yea,  you  said  that  if  there  were  not  one 
amongst  three,  that  were  very  few.  But  there  is 
not  amongst  thre^  hundred  for  anything  that  I  can 
see ;  for  if  there  were,  there  would  not  be  so  many 
that  w^ould  seek  their  neighbors'  goods  and  lives 
as  there  are."  Langdale  cunningly  asked  him 
how  many  he  thought  there  w^ere  of  that  little 
flock ;  but  he  got  not  the  information  he  wanted, 
for  Woodman  told  him  it  would  be  making  him- 
self equal  with  God  to  answer  it ;  he  then  quoted 
many  passages  of  Scripture,  to  show  that  the  great 
mass  of  mankind  are  in  error,  and  Christ's  believ- 
ing people  a  small  number,  ending  by  an  offer  to 
furnish  farther  evidence ;  and  also  to  show  that 
the  doctor  and  his  party  were  not  in  that  small 
number. 

Langdale  then  began  to  stamp  the  floor,  to  show 
his  rage,  railing  at  him  for  a  long  time.  When  he 
had  finished  this.  Woodman  asked  him,  where- 
fore he  was  so  angry  at  his  answering  the  ques- 
tions proposed?  Langdale  said  he  had  not  an- 
swered him  as  to  original  sin,  and  that  he  denied 
original  sin. 

Before  the  martyr  could  reply,  a  Mr.  Gage,  who 
had  been  kind  to  Woodman,  came  into  the  room. 
He  acted  as  a  peacemaker,  and  persuaded  the 
angry  doctor  to  resume  the  examination,  suggest- 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  20T 

iiig  that  lie  should  question  him  on  the  sacrament 
of  the  altar  ;  and  here  the  former  discussion  with 
Chichester  and  the  priest  was,  in  substance,  re- 
peated. It  ended,  of  course,  by  remanding  the 
prisoner  to  the  Marshalsea. 

It  may  be  proper  to  remark  here,  that  Wood- 
man seems  to  have  had  rather  singular  views  of  the 
meaning  of  some  figurative  passages  of  Scripture. 
As,  for  instance,  his  supposing  the  symbol,  "  lively 
stones,"  to  refer  to  flint  stones,  out  of  which  fire 
might  be  struck  to  enlighten  the  darkness  of 
others.  A  beautiful  idea,  though  singular,  and 
not  the  meaning  of  the  text.  Salvation  by  grace, 
however,  was  the  main  point  which  the  holy  mar- 
tyrs of  that  day  were  anxious  to  guard  against  the 
system  of  salvation  by  works,  which  was  taught 
by  the  persecuting  church. 

Woodman's  next  examination  took  place  at  St. 
George's  church,  in  South wark,  before  the  bishops 
of  Winchester  and  Eochester,  with  others.  Win- 
chester commenced  by  giving  a  long  history  of 
his  former  imprisonment  and  release,  his  alleged 
oftences  since,  and  his  capture.  In  this  he  made 
just  as  many  mistakes  as  he  made  statements  ;  and 
at  the  end  Woodman  showed  him  the  utter  false- 
hood of  what  he  had  said.  The  whole  time  w^as 
occupied  in  reporting  stories  of  Woodman's  re- 
ported sayings  and  actions,  contrary  to  the  laws, 
not  one  of  which  charges  could  they  maintain ;  and 
he  was  sent  to  prison,  when  there  seemed  a  greater 
probability   of  their  being   compelled  to   release 


208  BAPTIST   MAETYRS. 

him.     But  what  can  the  lamb's  innocence  avail, 
when  the  hungry  wolf  has  it  under  his  paw  ? 

Three  weeks  afterwards,  he  was  brought  to  St. 
Mary's,  in  Southwark,  where  sat  the  bishop  of 
Winchester,  Harpsfield,  Langdale,  and  other  com- 
missioners, in  the  presence  of  more  than  three 
hundred  people.  Winchester  began  by  rebuking 
him  for  defending  himself  so  strongly  on  the  last 
occasion,  when  Woodman  had  maintained  that  he 
was  not  sent  to  prison  for  any  heresy,  but  for  the 
breach  of  a  statute  in  speaking  to  a  priest  in  the 
pulpit.  The  bishop  now  tried  to  disprove  this; 
but  Woodman  told  him  he  had  bought  a  statute 
book  since  he  was  imprisoned,  and  had  made  out 
the  whole  case,  confirming  what  he  had  before  as- 
serted, and  proving  the  bishop's  charge  to  be  false. 
Finding  this  would  not  answer,  Winchester  then 
produced  the  account,  in  the  prisoner's  own  V9iit- 
ing,  of  the  former  examinations  before  the  com- 
missioners, and  proceeded  to  question  him  as  to 
his  belief  in  the  sacrament  of  the  altar.  Wood- 
man, seeing  that  the  bishop  only  wanted  to  make 
him  utter,  in  his  discourse,  something  that  he 
might  catch  hold  of,  to  assume  the  character  of 
his  ordinary,  replied,  "I  will  answer  you  to  no 
such  thing,  for  I  am  not  of  your  diocese ;  therefore 
I  will  not  answer  to  you."  Winchester  said, 
"  Thou  art  within  my  diocese,  and  thou  hast  of- 
fended within  my  diocese ;  and  therefore  I  will 
have  to  do  with  thee."  ''Have  to  do  with  me  if 
you  will,"  replied  the  martyr,  "but  I  will  have 
nothing  to  do  with  you,  I  tell  you  plainly.     For 


KICHAKD    WOODMAN.  209 

though  I  be  now  in  yonr  diocese,  I  have  not  of- 
fended in  your  diocese,  if  I  have,  show  me  where- 
in." He  was  told  of  his  own  handwriting,  there 
present,  which  stated  his  heretical  opinions.  He 
owned  it  as  his,  but  said  that,  being  merely  a  re- 
lation of  the  talk  between  him  and  the  commis- 
sioners, it  was  no  offence,  nor  had  they  anything 
to  do  with  it.  The  bishop  then  ordered  him  to 
be  sworn,  that  he  might  question  him  as  to  where 
he  wrote  it,  and  whether  he  still  held  the  same 
doctrines ;  but  Woodman  refused  to  be  sworn  by 
him,  not  being  his  ordinary;  and  also  protested 
he  wrote  no  word  of  the  paper  in  that  diocese. 
Langdale  then  asserted  that  it  was  written  in  the 
King's  Bench  prison.  Woodman  declared  that 
he  did  not  write  it  there.  A  fat  proud  priest  next 
demanded  where  he  wrote  it.  He  answered,  that 
he  owed  him  not  so  much  service  as  to  tell  him ; 
they  must  find  it  out  how  they  could,  for  they  only 
sought  his  life.  Winchester  then  went  on  to  read 
from  his  paper  the  replies  that  he  had  formerly 
given  to  the  commissioners,  and  several  times 
sought  to  entrap  him  into  some  expression  of  his 
opinion  there  ;  but  Woodman  was  too  wary  to  be 
caught. 

When  the  bishop,  after  reading  his  remarks  on 
the  publication  of  false  doctrine  in  pulpits  and 
churches,  asked  him,  where  it  took  place,  he  re- 
plied, "  In  the  synagogue  of  Satan,  where  God  is 
dishonored  by  false  doctrine."  "  I  pray  you,  where 
is  one  of  them?"  asked  Winchester;  "l!Tay,"  he 
replied,  ''that  judge  yourself;  I  came  not  here  to 
18* 


210  BAPTIST    MAKTYRS. 

be  a  judge.'*  Having,  in  like  manner,  baffled  all 
attempts  to  make  him  commit  himself,  he  answered 
the  bishop  very  severely  as  to  some  of  his  railing 
speeches,  quoting  the  book  of  Revelation,  and  also 
the  apocryphal  one  called  the  Book  of  Wisdom. 
When  he  named  this  Winchester  cried  out,  "  Wis- 
dom !  what  speakest  thou  of  wisdom  ?  thou  never 
hadst  it ;  for  thou  art  as  very  a  fool  as  ever  I  heard 
speak."  Woodman  answered,  ''Do  you  not  know 
that  the  foolish  things  of  the  world  must  confound 
the  wise  things  ?  wherefore,  it  grieveth  me  not  to 
be  called  a  fool  at  your  hands."  ''N'ay,  thou  art 
none  of  those  fools,"  returned  the  bishop;  thou 
art  an  obstinate  fool  and  a  heretic.  Lay  hand  on 
the  book,  and  answer  to  such  things  as  I  will  lay 
against  thee."  Woodman  refused,  repeating  that 
he  was  not  of  that  diocese.  Winchester  exlaimed, 
"  This  man  is  without  law ;  he  careth  not  for  the 
king  or  queen,  I  dare  say,  for  he  will  not  obey 
their  laws.  Let  me  see  the  king's  commission.  I 
will  see  whether  he  will  obey  that  or  not."  The 
martyr  remarked,  "  I  would  you  loved  the  king 
and  queen's  majesty  no  less  than  I  do,  if  it  pleased 
God;  you  would  not  do  then  as  you  do  now." 
''Hold  him  a  book,"  repeated  the  angry  bishop, 
"  he  is  a  rank  heretic.  Thou  shalt  answer  to  such 
things  as  I  will  demand  of  thee." 

Woodman  then  said,  "  I  take  heaven  and  earth 
to  witness  that  I  am  no  heretic ;  neither  can  I  tell 
wherefore  I  am  brought  to  prison,  no  more  than 
any  man  here  can  tell."  He  looked  round  upon 
the  people,   and  then  continued,   addressing  the 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  211 

bishop,  "  If  you  have  any  just  cause  against  me 
worthy  of  death,  lay  it  against  me,  and  let  me 
have  it ;  for  I  refuse  not  to  die,  I  praise  God,  for 
the  truth's  sake,  if  I  had  ten  lives.  If  you  have 
no  cause,  let  me  go  home,  I  pray  you,  to  my  wife 
and  children,  to  see  them  maintained;  and  other 
poor  folk  that  I  would  set  to  work,  by  the  help  of 
God.  I  have  set  to  work  a  hundred  persons  ere 
this,  all  the  year  together,  and  was  unjustly  taken 
from  them ;  but  God  forgive  them  who  did  it,  if  it 
be  his  will!"  The  inhuman  bishop  now  said, 
''  Do  you  see  how  he  looketh  about  for  help  ?  But 
I  would  see  any  man  show  thee  a  cheerful  coun- 
tenance, and  especially  you  that  be  of  my  diocese. 
If  any  of  you  bid  God  strengthen  him,  or  take  him 
by  the  hand,  or  embrace  him,  or  show  him  a  cheer- 
ful countenance,  you  shall  be  ^excommunicated, 
and  shall  not  be  received  again  till  you  have  done 
open  penance;  and  therefore  beware  of  it."  The 
martyr  replied,  "  I  look  for  no  help  from  man,  for 
God  is  on  my  side,  I  praise  him  therefor ;  and 
therefore  I  need  not  to  care  who  are  against  me ; 
neither  do  I  care."  The  judges  called  oat,  "  Away 
with  him,  and  bring  us  another."  So  he  was  car- 
ried back  to  prison. 

The  sixth  and  last  examination  of  this  bold 
champion  took  place,  also,  at  St.  Mary  Overy's, 
two  days  after  the  preceding  one  ;  where  were  pre- 
sent the  bishops  of  Winchester  and  Chichester, 
Harpsfield,  Langdale,  Roper,  and  the  same  priests 
who  had  formerly  assisted  them.  Winchester  told 
him  that  he  had  affirmed  certain  heresies  the  last 


212  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

time  before  them ;  and  asked  if  he  held  them 
still,  or  would  revoke  them.  He  answered  that  he 
held  no  heresies,  as  the  Lord  knew.  "ISo  !"  said 
the  bishop,  "  did  yon  not  affirm  that  Judas  received 
bread  ?  which  is  a  heresy,  unless  you  tell  what 
more  than  bread."  Woodman  replied,  "Is  it 
heresy  to  say  that  Judas  received  no  more  than 
bread  ?  I  said  he  received  more  than  bare  bread, 
for  he  received  the  same  sacrament  that  was  pre- 
pared to  show  forth  the  Lord's  death ;  and  be- 
cause he  presumed  to  eat  without  faith,  he  ate 
the  devil  with  all,  as  the  words  of  Christ  declare ; 
after  he  ate  the  sop,  the  devil  entered  into  him,  as 
you  cannot  deny."  "Hold  him  a  book,"  said  the 
bishop,  "I  will  have  you  answer  directly  whether 
Judas  did  eat  the  body  or  no."  But  Woodman 
refused  to  be  sworn,  maintaining  that  the  bishop 
of  Winchester  had  no  jurisdiction  over  him  in  the 
cause ;  and  to  this  he  inflexibly  stood.  He  also 
pleaded  that  the  bishop  of  London  had  discharged 
him  of  all  the  matters  laid  against  him  ;  and  that 
it  was  unlawful  as  well  as  unjust,  to  imprison  and 
try  him  over  again  on  the  same  charges. 

Winchester  said,  ttiat  if  he  was  again  suspected 
of  being  a  heretic,  they  had  a  right  to  call  him 
before  him  and  examine  him  of  his  faith,  upon 
suspicion.  "  Indeed,"  said  Woodman,  "  St.  Peter 
willeth  me  to  render  account  of  my  hope  that  I 
have  in  God;  and  I  am  contented  so  to  do,  if  it 
please  my  bishop  to  hear  me."  "Yes,  I  pray 
you,  let  us  hear  it,"  said  the  bishop  of  Chichester. 
"  I  do  believe  in  God  the  Father,  Almighty,  Maker 


RICHARD   WOODMAN.  213 

of  heaven  and  earth,  and  of  all  things  visible  and 
invisible ;  and  in  one  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  my 
Saviour,  very  God  and  very  man.  I  believe  in 
God  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Comforter  of  all  God's 
elect  people,  and  that  he  is  equal  with  the  Father 
and  the  Son.  I  believe  in  the  true  Catholic  church, 
and  all  the  sacraments  that  belong  thereto.  Thus 
have  I  rendered  account  of  my  hope  that  I  have 
of  my  salvation." 

Winchester  asked,  ^^And  how  believe  you  in 
the  blessed  sacrament  of  the  altar?"  And  at 
that  word  they  all  took  off  their  caps  in  honor  of 
the  idol.  Woodman  replied,  "  I  pray  you  be  con- 
tented, for  I  will  not  answer  to  any  more  ques- 
tions; for  I  perceive  you  go  about  to  shed  my 
blood."  "  isTo  !"  said  the  bishop,  "  hold  him  a 
book.  If  he  refuse  to  swear,  he  is  an  Anabaptist, 
and  shall  be  excommunicated."  Woodman  firmly 
repeated,  "  I  will  not  swear  for  you,  excommuni- 
cate me  if  you  will.  For  you  are  not  fit  to  receive 
an  oath;  for  you  laid  heresies  to  my  charge  in 
yonder  pulpit,  the  which  you  are  not  able  to 
prove ;  wherefore  you  are  not  meet  to  take  an 
oath  of  any  man.  And  as  for  me,  I  am  not  of 
your  diocese,  nor  will  have  anything  to  do  with 
you."  Winchester  repeated  that  he  would  have 
to  do  with  him  :  and  that  he  was  a  strong  heretic. 
Woodman  remarked,  that  all  truth  was  heresy  with 
them ;  but  offered  to  show  them  his  belief  con- 
cerning the  sacrament,  and  then  repeated  what  he 
had  before  declared,  as  to  his  coming  in  faith  that 
Christ  suffered  for  his  sins,  and  that  he  should  be 


214  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

saved  by  his  blood-shedding ;  and  so  receiving  a 
whole  Christ,  mystically,  by  faith.  On  his  uttering 
the  last  words  they  all  cried  out ;  and  the  fat 
priest,  calling  him  a  fool,  demanded  what  he 
meant  by  "mystically."  He  replied,  "I  take 
mystically  to  be  the  faith  that  is  in  us ;  that  the 
world  seeth  not,  but  God  only." 

Here  Winchester  remarked  that  he  knew  not 
what  he  said ;  and  demanded  once  more  a  direct 
answer,  as  to  the  real  presence  in  the  sacrament. 
"Woodman  replied,  "  I  have  said  as  much  as  I  will 
say;  excommunicate  me  if  you  will.  I  am  not 
of  your  diocese.  The  bishop  of  Chichester  is  mine 
ordinaiy.  Let  him  do  it  if  you  will  needs  have 
my  blood,  that  it  may  be  required  at  his  hands." 
Chichester  said,  "  I  am  not  consecrated  yet ;  I  told 
you  so  when  you  were  with  me."  The  martyr 
seems  to  have  penetrated  the  true  character  of  this 
man,  whose  name  was  Christopherson,  and  who, 
after  his  consecration,  became  as  violent  a  perse-^ 
cutor  as  any  of  his  brethren.  Woodman,  on  re- 
collecting that  a  bull  from  Rome  must  arrive 
before  he  could  receive  consecration,  quaintly  re- 
marked, ''ISTo,  indeed,  your  kine  bringeth  forth 
nothing  but  cow-calves,  as  it  chanceth  now." 
This  put  the  pope's  clergy  in  a  rage  ;  and  they  all 
railed  at  him  together,  telling  him  that  he  was  out 
of  his  wits.  "  So  Festus  said  to  Paul  when  he 
spake  the  words  of  soberness  and  truth,  as  taught 
by  the  Spirit  of  God,  as  I  do,"  said  Woodman. 
"  But  as  you  have  judged,  you  shall  be  judged 
yourselves.     You  will  go  to  hell,  and  all  like  you, 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  215 

if  you  condemn  me,  and  repent  not  of  it 
speedily." 

After  some  commotion,  Winchester  and  Harps- 
field  said,  "  We  go  not  about  to  condemn  thee, 
but  go  about  to  save  thy  soul,  if  thou  wilt  be  ruled, 
and  do  as  we  would  have  thee."  "To  save  my 
soul!"  repeated  the  martyr,  "Nay,  you  cannot 
save  my  soul.  My  soul  is  saved  already  ;  I  praise 
God  therefor.  There  can  no  one  save  my  soul  but 
Jesus  Christ;  and  he  it  is  who  has  saved  my  soul 
before  the  foundation  of  the  world  was  laid."  On 
this  a  priest  cried  out,  "  What  a  heresy  is  that,  my 
lords !  He  saith  his  soul  was  saved  before  the 
foundations  of  the  world  were  laid."  Then  turning 
to  Woodman,  "  Thou  canst  not  tell  what  thou 
sayest.  Was  thy  soul  saved  before  it  existed?" 
''  Yes,  I  praise  God  I  can  tell  what  I  say,  and  I 
say  the  truth.  Look  at  the  first  chapter  of  the 
Ephesians,  and  there  you  shall  find  it,  where  Paul 
saith,  'Blessed  be  God,  the  Father  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  w^ho  hath  blessed  us  with  all  spiritual 
blessings  in  heavenly  places  in  Christ,  according 
as  he  hath  chosen  us  in  him  before  the  foundation 
of  the  world,  that  we  should  be  holy  and  without 
blame  before  him  in  love  ;  having  predestinated 
us  unto  the  adoption  of  children.'  These  are  the 
words  of  Paul,  and  I  believe  they  are  most  true. 
And  therefore  it  is  my  faith  in  and  by  Jesus  Christ 
that  saveth ;  and  not  you  or  any  man  else." 

"  What !"  said  the  priest,  "  faith  without  works? 
St.  James  saith,  'faith  without  works  is  dead;' 
and  we  have  free  will  to  do  good  works."     Wood- 


216  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

man  replied,  "  I  would  not  that  any  of  you  should 
think  that  I  disallow  good  works.  For  a  good 
faith  cannot  be  without  good  works.  Yet  not  of 
ourselves,  for  it  is  the  gift  of  God ;  as  St.  Paul 
saith  to  the  Philippians,  '  It  is  God  that  worketh 
in  us  both  to  will  and  to  do,  of  his  good  pleasure.'  " 
Winchester,  not  enduring  to  hear  so  much  sound 
doctrine,  now  interposed,  saying,  "  Make  an  end ; 
answer  to  me.  Here  is  your  ordinary,  the  arch- 
deacon of  Canterbury;  he  is  made  your  ordinary 
by  my  lord  cardinal,  and  he  hath  authority  to  ex- 
amine you  of  your  faith  upon  a  book,  to  answer  to 
such  articles  as  he  will  lay  to  you.  And  I  pray 
you  refuse  it  not,  for  the  danger  is  great  if  you  do. 
"Wherefore  we  desire  you  to  show  yourself  a  sub- 
ject in  this  matter."  Then  the  rest,  having  by 
this  time  discovered  that  nothing  was  to  be  done 
with  this  resolute  victim  by  harshness,  all  joined, 
saying,  "  Lo,  my  lord  desireth  you  gently  to 
answer  him,  and  so  do  we  all.  For  if  you  refuse 
to  take  an  oath,  he  may  excommunicate  you.  For 
my  lord  cardinal  may  put  whom  he  will  in  the 
bishop's  office,  until  he  is  consecrated."  But 
Woodman  was  not  to  be  so  led.  He  answered, 
*'  I  know  not  so  much.  If  you  will  give  me  time 
to  learn  the  truth  of  it,  and  if  I  can  find  it  to  be  as 
you  say,  I  will  tell  you  my  mind  in  anything  he 
shall  ask  of  me  without  any  flattering."  The 
priest  said,  "  My  lord  and  we  all  tell  thee  it  is 
true,  and  therefore  answer  to  him."  ^' I  will  be- 
lieve none  of  you  all,"  replied  Woodman,  ^^for  you 
are  turncoats  and  changelings,  and  are  wavering- 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  217 

minded,  as  St.  James  says;  you  are  neither  hot 
nor  cold,  as  saith  St.  John,  therefore  God  will  cast 
you  out  of  his  mouth.  "Wherefore  I  can  believe 
none  of  you  all ;  I  tell  you  the  truth."  "  What !" 
said  Winchester,  "are  we  turncoats  and  change- 
lings ?  What  meanest  thou  by  that?"  "  I  mean," 
answered  the  plain-spoken  prisoner,  "  that  in  king 
Edw^ard's  days  you  taught  the  doctrine  that  was 
set  forth  then,  every  one  of  you ;  and  now  you 
teach  the  contrary ;  therefore  I  call  you  turncoats 
and  changelings,  as  I  may  well  enough."  These 
words  made  them  quake,  and  Winchester  said, 
"ISTay,  not  all,  as  it  chanced."  "  IsTo  !  I  pray  you, 
where  were  you  then  ?"  asked  Woodman.  The 
bishop  replied,  "  I  w^as  in  the  tower,  as  the  lieu- 
tenant will  bear  me  record."  "If  you  were  in  the 
tower,"  said  Woodman,  "  it  was  not  therefor,  I 
dare  say;  it  was  for  some  other  matter."  Then 
the  others  took  heart,  and  said,  "My  lord,  he 
Cometh  to  examine  you,  we  think ;  if  he  will  not 
answer  to  the  articles,  it  were  best  for  you  to  ex- 
communicate him."  The  bishop  replied,  "  He  is 
the  naughtiest,  and  most  impudent  heretic  I  ever 
knew;  I  will  read  the  sentence  against  him." 
After  some  more  angry  speaking,  and  being  told 
again  by  Woodman  that  if  he  condemned  him  he 
would  be  punished  everlastingly ;  with  the  assur- 
ance that  he  himself  was  not  afraid  to  die  for 
God's  sake,  if  he  had  a  hundred  lives ;  the  bishop 
repeated,  "For  God's  sake?  nay,  for  the  devil's 
sake.  Thou  sayest  thou  art  not  afraid  to  die ;  no 
more  w^as  Judas,  who  hanged  himself,  as  thou  wilt 

19 


218  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

kill  thyself  wilfully,  because  thou  wilt  not  be 
ruled."  Woodman  said,  '^l^ay,  I  defy  the  devil, 
Judas,  and  all  their  members.  And  the  flesh  of 
Judas  was  not  afraid,  but  his  spirit  and  conscience 
were  afraid,  and  therefore  he  despaired  and  hung 
himself.  But,  I  praise  God,  I  feel  no  unwillingness 
in  my  flesh  to  die,  but  a  joyful  conscience  and 
willing  mind  thereto.  Wherefore  my  flesh  is  sub- 
dued to  it,  I  praise  God ;  and  therefore  I  am  not 
afraid  of  death." 

The  bishop  of  Chichester  then  said,  "  Wood- 
man, for  God's  sake  be  ruled.  You  know  what 
you  said  at  my  house.  I  could  say  more  if  I 
would."  "Say  what  you  can,"  said  the  undaunted 
martyr;  "the  most  fault  that  you  found  in  me 
was,  because  I  praised  the  living  God;  and  be- 
cause I  said,  'I  praise  God  and  the  Lord;'  which 
you  ought  to  be  ashamed  of,  if  you  have  any 
grace ;  for  I  told  you  where  the  words  were  writ- 
ten." Winchester  spoke  next: — "Well,  how  say 
you?  Will  you  confess  that  Judas  received  the 
body  of  Christ  unworthily  ?  tell  me  plainly."  "  My 
lord,"  he  replied,  "  if  you,  or  any  of  you  all,  can 
prove  before  all  this  audience,  in  all  the  Bible, 
that  any  man  ever  ate  the  body  of  Christ  un- 
worthily, then  I  will  be  with  you  in  all  things  that 
you  will  demand  of  me ;  of  the  which  matter  I  de- 
sire all  these  people  to  be  witness."  "Will  you 
so?"  said  the  priest,  "then  we  shall  agree  well 
enough.  St.  Paul  saith  so."  Woodman  asked, 
"I  pray  you  where  saith  he  so?  Eehearse  the 
words."     The  priest  answered   "in  the  eleventh 


IIICHARD    WOODMAN.  219 

chapter  of  the  first  epistle  to  the  Corinthians,  he 
saith,  '  ^Hioso  eateth  of  this  blood,  and  drinketh 
of  this  cup,  unworthily,  eateth  and  drinketh  his 
own  damnation,  because  he  maketh  no  difference 
of  the  Lord's  body.'  "  Woodman  then  asked, 
"  Do  these  words  prove  that  Judas  ate  the  body  of 
Christ  unworthily  ?  I  pray  you  let  me  see  them." 
They  gave  him  the  book,  and  he  went  on:— ^ 
^'  These  are  the  words,  even  that  you  said ;  good 
people  hearken  well  to  them.  '  "Whoso  eateth  of 
this  bread,  and  drinketh  unworthily  ;'  he  saith  not 
Whoso  eateth  of  this  body  unworthily,  or  drinketh 
of  this  blood  unworthily ;  but  he  saith,  "  Wliosoever 
eateth  of  this  bread,  and  drinketh  of  this  cup  un- 
worthily, (which  is  the  sacrament,)  eateth  and 
drinketh  his  own  damnation,'  because  he  maketh 
no  difference  between  the  sacrament  which  repre- 
senteth  the  Lord's  body,  and  other  bread  and 
drink.  Here,  good  people,  you  may  all  see  that 
they  are  not  able  to  prove  their  sajdngs  true. 
Wherefore,  I  cannot  believe  them  in  anything  that 
they  do." 

Winchester  then  exclaimed,  "  Thou  art  a  rank 
heretic  indeed!  Art  thou  an  expounder?  Now 
I  will  read  sentence  against  thee."  "Judge  not, 
lest  you  be  judged,"  said  the  martyr  again;  "for 
as  you  have  judged  me,  you  are  yourself."  Win- 
chester commenced  reading,  and  he  asked,  "Why 
will  you  read  the  sentence  against  me,  and  cannot 
tell  wherefore?"  "Thou  art  a  heretic,"  answered 
the  wicked  prelate,  "and  therefore  thou  shalt  be 
excommunicated."     "I  am  no  heretic,  I  take  hea- 


220  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

ven  and  earth  to  witness,  T  defy  all  heretics  ;  and 
if  you  condemn  me,  you  will  be  condemned  eter- 
nally, if  you  repent  not.  But  God  give  you  grace 
to  repent  it,  if  it  be  his  will." 

"And  so,"  writes  Woodman,  in  ^losing  his 
story,  "  he  read  forth  the  sentence  in  Latin,  but 
what  he  said  God  knoweth,  and  not  I.  God  be 
judge  between  them  and  me.  When  he  had  done, 
I  would  have  talked  my  mind  to  them,  but  they 
cried  out,  '  Away,  away  with  him  !'  So  I  was  car- 
ried to  the  Marshalsea  again ;  where  I  now  am ; 
and  shall  be,*  as  long  as  it  shall  please  God.  And 
I  praise  God  most  heartily  that  ever  he  hath 
elected,  and  predestinated  me  to  come  to  so  high 
a  dignity,  as  to  bear  rebuke  for  his  name's  sake ; 
his  name  be  praised  therefor,  for  ever  and  ever. 
Amen." 

Woodman  was  not  burned  alone.  He  was  one 
of  ten  who  were  consumed  in  the  same  pile. 
George  Stevens  had  been  some  time  in  the  prison 
also  for  the  truth ;  but  the  remaining  eight  had 
been  only  apprehended  two,  or  at  most  three  days 
before  they  received  sentence  at  the  mouths  of 
these  persecuting  ministers,  professedly  servants 
of  the  meek  and  lowly  Jesus.  W.  Maynard,  and 
A.  Hosman,  his  servant ;  J.  Morris,  with  his  aged 
mother,  Margery  Morris ;  Thomasine  Wood,  Mr. 
Maynard's  maid-servant;  Dennis  Burgess;  and 
two  married  w^omen,  named  Ashdowne  and  Grove, 
were  all  at  large,  some  say  the  very  day  before 
they  were  committed  to  the  flames.  'No  time  was 
allowed  for  a  writ  to  come  down  from  London,  to 


RICHARD    WOODMAN.  221 

Lewes,  in  the  county  of  Sussex,  wliere  they  suf- 
fered. Such  legal  proceedings  were  then  scarcely 
thought  of.  The  process  of  the  murderers  was 
like  that  of  the  Babylonian  tyrant  on  the  plains  of 
Dura.  Whosoever  would  not  worship  the  idols, 
was  seized,  bound,  and  cast  into  the  fire. 


19* 


JAN   PETERS   AND   HIS    FRIENDS. 


There  is  an  important  sense  in  wHcli  it  may 
be  said  that  the  developments  of  history  are  pro- 
gressive. History  has  of  late  been  more  carefully 
studied ;  fiction  has  been  sifted  from  fact ;  private 
documents  have  been  brought  forward  to  substan- 
tiate or  correct  public  statements ;  and  we  are  less 
disposed  than  formerly  to  be  terrified  by  mere 
names.  We  have  become  fully  satisfied  that  Ana- 
baptist may  be  a  nickname  for  a  truly  eminent 
Christian. 

The  good  men  and  women  of  whom  we  are  now 
writing  had  fled  to  London  from  the  Low  Coun- 
tries, to  escape  the  suflferings  to  which  Baptist 
principles  exposed  them.  "  We  had  to  forsake  our 
friends/'  says  one  of  the  suflerers,  "  our  country, 
our  possessions,  on  account  of  tyranny,  and  fled  as 
lambs  from  a  wolf ;  only  because  of  the  pure  evan- 
gelical truth  of  Christ,  and  not  for  uproars'  or  fac- 
tions' sake,  like  those  of  Munster,  whose  views  are 
an  abomination  of  which  we  have  been  slander- 
ously accused." 

The  English  are  often  boasting  of  their  good 
Queen  Elizabeth,  but  the  following,  among  many 
other  similar  facts,  shows  that  she  had  little  in 
which  they  can  honorably  glory.  In  her  day,  the 
fierceness  of  ecclesiastical  intolerance  was  severely 
felt 

(222) 


JAN    PETERS    AND    HIS    FRIENDS.  ?23 

As  e;>y]y  as  1568,  the  Baptists  had  engaged  the  at- 
tention of  the  bishops,  who  obtained  a  proclama- 
tion from  the  queen  directing  a  severe  visitation  to 
be  made  throughout  London,  and  ordering  all 
persons  "  that  have  conceived  any  manner  of  such 
heretical  opinions,  as  the  Anabaptists  do  hold,  and 
meaneth  not  by  charitable  teaching  to  be  recon- 
ciled, to  depart  out  of  this  realm  within  twenty 
days,  upon  pain  of  forfeiture  of  all  their  goods,  and 
to  be  imprisoned  and  further  punished."  This 
proclamation  does  not  appear  to  have  had  its  in- 
tended effect,  for  the  sectaries  rapidly  increased. 
A  short  time  prior  to  the  death  of  Archbishop 
Parker,  a  congregation  of  them  w^as  discovered  in 
Aldgate,  London,  twenty-seven  of  whom  were 
cornmitted  to  prison. 

These  persons  had  fled  from  the  slaughterings 
and  devastations  caused  by  the  Duke  of  Alva  in 
Flanders,  and  in  the  expectation  that  in  now  Pro- 
testant England  they  would  be  free  from  the  per- 
secutions to  which  they  had  been  exposed.  But 
their  peace  and  security  did  not  last  long.  Popery 
had  passed  away  only  in  name,  and  its  spirit  still 
lived  in  full  vigor  in  the  queen  and  the  govern- 
ment ;  and  these  simple-hearted  Christian  people 
soon  felt  its  power. 

The  morning  of  the  Sabbath,  April  3d,  1575, 
liad  dawned.  It  was  deemed  by  the  dominant 
party  a  holy  season — Easter  day,  the  grand  feast 
in  commemoration  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus 
Christ  from  the  dead.  Thirty  disciples  of  the 
Lord,    men   and   women,   had    assembled   in   an 


224  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

upper  room  for  worship  near  the  Aldgate,  one  of 
the  entrances  of  the  city  of  London.  How  pure, 
how  tender,  but  how  unearthly  the  devotion  of  such 
a  meeting  !  Outcasts  and  strangers,  they  sought 
a  heavenly  citizenship,  and  in  this  sojourn  met  to 
comfort  each  other,  and  to  unite  their  prayers  at  a 
throne  of  grace.  What  a  power  of  principle  did 
they  unfold !  All  the  dignity  of  Christian  man- 
hood was  there  seen  !  They  knew  the  power  of 
suffering ;  they  were  prepared  again  to  brave  its 
fary,  if  necessary,  for  the  advancement  of  the  truth. 
Imagination  realizes  more  than  this,  as  by  an  effort 
it  aims  to  identify  itself  with  this  little  band  of 
Christian  disciples. 

Their  meeting,  though  conducted  in  quietude, 
was  detected  by  their  neighbors,  and  a  constable 
was  soon  on  the  spot  with  an  assistant  or  two  from 
whom  they  might  all  have  easily  escaped.  Ad- 
dressing them  as  devils,  this  professed  officer  of 
justice  demanded  which  was  their  teacher.  Seven 
and  twenty  of  their  names  were  at  his  command 
recorded,  and  taking  the  promise  of  the  rest  to  re- 
main, he  proceeded  with  seven  of  them  to  a  ma- 
gistrate. He  soon  after  returned,  and  with  op- 
probrious and  cruel  words  drove  the  rest  before 
him  to  the  jail.  Two  escaped  on  the  way;  the 
rest  were  led  ^^as  sheep  to  the  slaughter."  On 
the  third  day  they  were  released, — heavy  bail 
being  taken  for  their  appearance,  whenever  and 
wherever  it  should  please  the  authorities  to  de- 
termine. 

Information  of  the  capture  was  conveyed  to  the 


JAN    PETERS    AND    HIS    FRIENDS.  225 

queen's  council;  and  at  the  suggestion •  of  arch- 
bishop Parker,  a  commission  was  issued  on  the 
27th  of  April,  to  Sandys,  the  bishop  of  London, 
assisted  by  several  civilians  and  judges,  to  "  confer 
with  the  accused,  and  to  proceed  judicially,  if  the 
case  so  required."  In  a  very  few  days  the  sum- 
monses were  issued,  and  these  poor  people  stood 
criminally  arraigned  for  worshiping  God  according 
to  their  convictions.  The  court  assembled  in  the 
consistory  of  St.  Paul's,  because  it  was  a  case  of 
heresy.  Their  reconciliation  to  the  Dutch  church 
was  the  avowed  end  of  this  imposing  procedure. 
The  episcopal  smile  was  first  tried,  and  then  came 
the  terrible  frown.  These  sturdy  confessors  were 
assured  that  their  recantation  would  have  the  most 
healthful  influence  upon  the  state  of  their  souls, 
and  be  hailed  as  a  special  token  of  God's  great 
goodness  to  the  whole  church ;  whilst  the  alterna- 
tive in  this  world  would  be  banishment  or  death, 
and  in  the  future  hopeless  misery. 

The  following  graphic  account  is  from  the  pen 
of  Von  Byler,  one  of  the  prisoners ;  it  will  show 
us  the  nature  of  the  charge  upon  which  these  holy 
men  were  tried,  and  throw  a  gleam  of  light  upon 
the  mode  of  their  proceedings  : — 

"  When  we  came  before  the  bishop,  there  were 
present.  Master  Joris,  [the  minister  of  the  Dutch 
church,]  James  de  Koninck,  John  de  Kodemaker, 
two  members  of  the  council,  and  a  French  clerg}^- 
man.  We  were  placed  before  those  lords,  and 
their  servants,  who  propounded  four  questions  to 


226  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

US,  to  wliicli  we  were  to  give  an  affirmative  or  a 
negative. 

"  '  1.  Whether  Christ  did  not  assume  his  flesh 
from  the  body  of  Mary  V 

"  We  replied,  '  That  he  is  the  Son  of  the  living 
God/ 

"  '  2.  Whether  infants  should  not  be  baptized  V 

'' '  We  cannot  understand  matters  so,  for  we 
read  nothing  of  it  in  the  Scriptures/ 

"  '  3.  Whether  it  was  lawful  for  a  Christian  to 
attend  to,  or  discharge  the  duties  of  a  magistrate's 
office  V 

"  We  replied,  '  That  our  conscience  would  not 
suffer  us  to  do  so ;  but  we  considered  the  magis- 
trate as  a  minister  of  God,  for  the  protection  of 
the  servants  of  God?' 

'' '  4.  Whether  a  Christian  was  allowed  to  take 
an  oath?' 

''We  again  replied,  our  conscience  would  not 
allow  us  to  do  so,  for  Christ  said,  '  Let  your  com- 
munication be  yea,  yea,  nay,  nay.'  We  then  kept 
silent.  The  bishop  said  that  our  misdeeds  were 
very  gross,  and  we  could  not  inherit  the  kingdom 
of  God*     0  Lord,  avenge  not ! 

"The  bishop  then  remanded  us  to  prison.  A 
young  brother  who  was  first  interrogated,  boldly 
confessed  the  truth;  and  was  on  that  account 
sorely  accused,  and  led  to  Westminister,  where  he 
was  imprisoned  by  himself.  This  caused  us  much 
grief." 

Some  additional  information  may  be  collected 
from  an  interesting  letter  written  by  a  countryman 


JAN    PETERS    AND    HIS    FRIENDS.  227 

of  these  persecuted  saints  to  his  mother,  then  re- 
sident at  Ghent.  She  was  a  woman  of  great  piety, 
and  had  requested  her  son  to  supply  her  with  all 
the  information  he  could  procure.  His  name  was 
Somers,  a  resident  in  London,  a  member  of  the 
Dutch  church  there,  and  subsequently,  on  his  re- 
turn to  his  native  land,  was  raised  to  the  highest 
honors  of  the  State. 

"It  is  probable,"  he  says,  "that  I  am  better 
acquainted  with  the  circumstances  than  the  gene- 
rality of  people,  inasmuch  as  I  have  had  frequent 
intercourse  with  them,  and  have  received  informa- 
tion from  all  of  them :  so  that  I  cannot  forbear 
giving  such  an  account  of  it  as  accords  with  the 
extent  of  my  information  in  reference  to  the  mat- 
ter. In  connection  with  which  I  send  you  a  copy 
of  their  confession;  on  account  of  which  some 
died  and  others  are  retained  in  prison." 

On  their  return  from  their  examination  to  their 
place  of  confinement,  Mr.  Somers  says,  "  That  ten 
or  twelve  of  them  made  their  escape,  as  they  were 
aware  of  the  danger  to  which  they  were  exposed, 
and  perceived  the  fine  opportunity  of  escape  that 
presented  itself;  the  guard  consisted  of  but  two 
or  three  individuals.  The  whole  of  them,  however, 
in  the  course  of  two  or  thee  days,  returned  to  the 
prison,  partly  in  order  to  acquit  their  bail,  w^ho 
was  bound  in  the  sum  of  .£100,  and  partly  because 
the  bishop,  as  a  man  of  honor,  promised  with  an 
oath,  that  he  would  set  them  all  free  in  the  course 
of  five  or  six  days  if  they  would  return  ;  but  if  not, 
the  rest  should  remain  in  prison  till  Candlemas." 


228  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

The  dreary  solitude  of  their  prison-house  was 
soon  disturbed  by  their  officious  opponents.  Again 
and  again  they  were  visited  by  many  I^Tether- 
landers,  and  twice  they  were  summoned  into  the 
august  presence  of  the  London  pontiffi  To  one 
of  these  visits  the  following  extract  refers : — 
"  When  we  were  all  lodged  in  prison,  came  Mas- 
ter Joris,  and  said,  if  we  would  join  the  church  he 
would  set  us  at  liberty — for  these  are  the  bishop's 
orders.  But  we  contended  valiantly  for  the  truth 
in  Christ  Jesus, — for  he  is  our  Captain,  and  none 
else  ;  upon  him  we  put  all  our  confidence."  These 
means  of  proselyting,  sooner  or  later  to  some  ex- 
tent, were  successful.  For  soon  "  after  this,  five 
of  the  men  were  converted  (through  much  disputa- 
tion with  these  Netherlanders  which  belonged  to 
the  church)  before  they  were  condemned  as  here- 
tics ;  nevertheless,  they  were  placed  before  a  ros- 
trum in  St.  Paul's  church-yard,  in  a  large  assem- 
bly of  some  thousands  of  Englishmen,  and  a  bundle 
of  fagots  was  laid  upon  each  one's  shoulder,  as  a 
sign  that  they  deserved  to  be  burnt.*     In  addition 

•  The  form  of  abjuration  made  by  these  men  is  a  curious  docu- 
ment, as  it  proves  to  what  lengths  the  prelatists  wished  persons 
professing  these  sentiments  to  go.  It  was  taken  before  Dr.  De 
Laune,  in  the  Dutch  church  Austin  Friars,  of  which  the  Doctor 
was  minister.  It  is  as  follows: — "  Whereas,  we  being  seduced  by 
the  devil,  the  spirit  of  error,  and  by  false  teachers,  have  fallen 
into  the  most  damnable  errors ;  that  Christ  took  not  flesh  of  the 
substance  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  that  the  infants  of  the  faithful  ought 
not  to  be  baptized, 'that  a  Christian  may  not  be  a  magistrate,  or 
bear  the  sword  and  office  of  authority,  and  that  it  is  not  lawful  for 
a  Christian  man  to  take  an  oath.     Now,  by  the  grace  of  God,  and 


JAN    PETERS   AND    HIS    FRIENDS.  229 

to  which  they  inflicted  manj  other  injuries  and 
ignominy  upon  them,  though  the  bishop  had  pro- 
mised that  he  would  set  them  at  liberty  without 
any  incumbrances  if  they  would  only  sign  the  four 
articles ;  but  the  event  proved  the  contrary.  This 
transpired  the  25th  of  May,  A.  D.  1575." 

For  the  fourth  time  these  worthy  Christians 
were  called  before  the  priestly  tribunal.  "  It 
was,"  says  Yon  Byler,  "  On  Whitsuntide  morning 
we  were  chained  two  and  two,  and  led  before  the 
lords.  When  we  were  brought  before  them,  they 
presented  the  same  four  questions,  urging  us  to 
'  subscribe  to  them ;'  but  we  told  them  we  would 
abide  by  the  Word  of  the  Lord.  We  were  then 
remanded  to  the  prison  and  fettered  as  before; 
the  women  were  confined  at  ITewgate,  together 
with  a  young  brother ;  but  they  were  released  and 
transported.  The  young  man,  however,  was  tied 
to  a  cart  and  scourged,  and  afterwards  whipped 
out  of  town." 

The  statement  of  Mr.  Somers  is  rather  fuller. 


the  assistance  of  good  and  learned  ministers  of  Christ's  church,  we 
understand  the  same  to  be  most  damnable  and  detestable  heresies ; 
and  do  ask  God,  before  his  church,  mercy  for  the  said  former 
errors ;  and  do  forsake,  recant,  and  renounce  them ;  and  we  ab- 
jure them  from  the  bottom  of  our  hearts,  protesting  we  certainly 
believe  the  contrary.  And  further,  we  confess  that  the  whole  doc- 
trine established  and  published  in  the  Church  of  England,  and  also 
that  which  is  received  by  the  Dutch  church  in  London,  is  found 
true  according  to  God's  word.  Whereunto  in  all  things  we  submit 
ourselves,  and  will  be  most  gladly  members  of  the  said  Dutch 
church ;  from  henceforth  utterly  abandoning  and  forsaking  all  and 
every  Anabaptistical  error." 

20 


230  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

and  gives  us  an  occasional  glimpse  of  the  tender- 
ness with  which  episcopal  hands  dealt  with  their 
erring  brethren.  ''  In  the  course  of  a  few  days, 
the  bishop  perceiving  that  the  rest  would  not  apos- 
tatize from  their  faith,  sentenced  them  all  to  death 
in  the  ecclesiastical  court  room,  St.  Paul's  church, 
(as  was  customary  with  the  Papistic  bishops,  during 
Queen  Mary's  reign,  who  were  wont  to  condemn 
the  Christians  to  death,)  and  delivered  them  into 
the  hands  of  the  civil  judge ;  then  they  bound 
the  women  hand  to  hand,  and  conducted  them 
to  IsTewgate — the  prison  for  capital  convicts, — 
together  with  one  of  the  men  which  was  con- 
sidered the  youngest  and  most  innocent  among 
them  ;  but  the  rest  of  the  men  were  conducted  to 
their  old  episcopal  prison,  for  which  reason  it  was 
supposed  that  the  w^omen  would  be  executed  first, 
even  as  persons  came  daily  to  threaten  them,  and 
to  present  death  to  them  unless  they  would  apos- 
tatize. Hence  they  suffered  great  anguish  and 
temptation  for  five  or  six  days,  supposing  every 
day  they  would  be  burnt ;  nay,  on  the  very  day 
that  sentence  of  their  banishment  came  from  the 
court, — for  the  bailiff  came  with  the  servant  at  ten 
o'clock  in  the  evening  into  the  prison,  to  take  an 
inventory  of  all  their  property,  informing  them,  in 
addition,  that  they  should  prepare  for  death  the 
next  day.  This  he  did,  in  order  to  see  whether 
any  of  them  would  apostatize  through  fear ;  but 
perceiving  that  they  all  remained  steadfast,  he  in- 
formed them  that  it  was  the  queen's  pleasure  to 
be  gracious  to  them,  and  merely  banish  them  from 


JAN   PETERS   AND   HIS    FRIENDS.  231 

the  country,  and  have  the  young  man  whipped 
behind  a  cart.  Accordingly,  in  the  course  of  five 
or  six  days,  about  fourteen  women  were  conveyed 
from  the  prison,  which  is  situated  in  the  space  be- 
tween St.  Martin's  church  and  St.  Catharine's,  to 
the  ship,  by  the  apparitors ;  but  the  young  man 
was  whipped  behind  a  cart  which  moved  on  before 
him.  Thus  they  were  all  banished  from  the  coun- 
try, on  pain  of  imprisonment,  and  reside  for  the 
present  in  Holland  and  Zealand  ! 

''  A  few  days  after,  the  five  men  that  remained 
in  the  bishop's  prison  were  likewise  sentenced  to 
death  by  the  bishop,  and  conveyed  to  IsTewgate, 
where  one  of  them  died  of  wretchedness  and  a  load  of 
chains ;  and  the  rest  were  apprehensive  that  they 
would  inflict  extreme  punishment  upon  the  wo- 
men. They  were  also  informed  that  the  queen 
and  her  whole  council  were  so  highly  ofifended  at 
them  that  no  person  would  venture  to  present  a 
petition  for  them,  since  an  evil  report  arose,  that 
they  denied  God  and  Christ,  and  rejected  all  go- 
vernment and  all  respect  for  the  magistrate  and 
civil  power,  as  ungodly  and  unchristian." 

Efforts  were  made  to  obtain  the  lives  and  free- 
dom of  these  Christians.  A  petition  and  confes- 
sion of  their  faith  were  presented  to  her  majesty  ; 
but  the  cruel  and  haughty  sovereign  refused  to 
listen  to  it,  and  indigantly  reprimanded  those 
through  whose  influence  it  had  been  laid  before 
her.  Failing  in  this,  they  laid  them  before  the 
bishop,  through  a  noble  lord.  He  graciously  con- 
descended to  tell  them  how  distressed  he  was  on 


232  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

their  account ;  but  there  was  no  hope  of  favor  un- 
less they  would  sign  the  four  articles  and  abjure 
their  heresy. 

It  is  to  the  immortal  honor  of  John  Foxe,  the 
Martyrologist,  whom  Ehzabeth,  notwithstanding 
his  Puritanism,  used  to  call  '^my  father  Foxe," 
that  he  now  interposed  on  behalf  of  these  de- 
spised and  hated  sectaries.  He  addressed  an  elo- 
quent letter  to  the  queen,  in  which  he  pleads  for 
their  lives  in  a  strain  of  earnest  and  impassioned 
supplication.  ''  To  roast  the  living  bodies  of  un- 
happy men,"  he  says,  ^'who  err  rather  through 
blindness  of  judgment  than  perverseness  of  will, 
in  fire  and  flames,  raging  with  pitch  and  brim- 
stone, is  a  hardhearted  thing,  and  more  agreeable 
to  the  practice  of  the  Romanists,  than  to  the  cus- 
tom of  the  gospellers.  I  do  not  speak  these  things 
because  I  am  pleased  with  their  wickedness,  or 
favor  thus  the  errors  of  any  men ;  but  seeing  I  my- 
self am  a  man,  I  must  favor  the  life  of  man  ;  not 
that  he  should  err,  but  that  he  might  repent. 
Wherefore,  if  I  may  be  so  bold,  I  humbly  beg  of 
your  royal  highness,  for  the  sake  of  Christ,  who 
was  consecrated  to  suffer  for  the  lives  of  many, 
this  favor  at  my  request,  which  even  the  divine 
clemency  would  engage  you  to,  that  if  it  may  be, 
(and  what  cannot  your  authority  do  in  such  cases?) 
these  unhappy  men  may  be  spared.  There  are 
excommunications  and  imprisonments;  there  are 
bonds ;  there  is  perpetual  banishment ;  burning 
of  the  hand ;  w^hipping ;  or  even  slavery. 

"This  one  thing  I  most  earnestly  beg;  that  the 


JAN    PETERS   AND    HIS    FRIENDS.  233 

piles  and  flames  of  Smithfield,  so  long  ago  extin- 
guished by  your  happy  government,  may  not  be 
revived.  But  if  I  may  not  obtain  this,  I  pray  with 
the  greatest  earnestness,  that  out  of  your  great 
pity,  you  would  grant  us  a  month  or  two,  in  which 
we  may  try  whether  the  Lord  will  grant  that  they 
may  turn  from  their  dangerous  errors,  lest  with 
the  destruction  of  their  bodies,  their  souls  be  in 
danger  of  eternal  ruin."  But  the  queen  was  inex- 
orable, and  they  must  die. 

From  the  Confession  of  Faith,  to  which  we 
have  referred,  as  sent  by  these  persons  to  the 
queen,  we  select  a  few  sentences,  that  our  readers 
may  see  what  it  was  his  lordship  of  London  con- 
demned as  heresy,  and  for  the  defence  of  which 
the  writers  were  burnt  at  the  stake  : 

''  We,  poor  and  despised  strangers,  who  are  per- 
secuted for  the  testimony  of  Jesus,  desire  that  God 
may  grant  all  mankind  peace,  so  that  they  may 
live  together  in  all  godliness  to  the  praise  of  the 
Lord,  and  the  advancement  of  their  soul's  salva- 
vation.  Since  so  many,  both  by  writing  and  ver- 
bal statement,  do  us  great  injustice,  accusing  and 
charging  lies  upon  us,  we  are  constrained  to  present 
our  belief  very  summarily.  They  do  not  speak  to 
us,  and  do  not,  in  a  mild  manner,  inquire  of  us 
what  our  religious  views  are,  as  the  Scriptures 
teach  ;  but  they  speak  all  manner  of  evil  of  us,  so 
that  they  increase  our  miseries  and  sufferings ; 
and,  besides,  they  have  no  compassion  either  on 
our  distressed  wives  or  helpless  children. 

"  We  seek  no  salvation  in  our  works,  as  it  is  re- 
20* 


234  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

ported  we  do,  but  we  hope  to  be  saved  alone 
through  the  merits  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  I^or 
do  we  boast  that  we  are  without  sin,  but  we  always 
confess  ourselves  sinners  before  God.  But  we 
have  to  refrain  from  voluntary  sins  if  we  would  be 
saved ;  such  as  adultery,  fornication,  sorcery,  sedi- 
tion, bloodshed,  cursing  and  swearing,  lying,  and 
cheating,  pride,  drunkenness,  envy ;  these  are  the 
sins  that  the  Scriptures  declare,  who  do  them  shall 
not  inherit  the  kingdom  ol  God. 

"  They  also  say,  we  refuse  to  hear  the  "Word  of 
God,  because  we  do  not  go  to  hear  the  preachers  of 
the  church.  To  this  charge  we  would  say,  that 
we  do  not  hear  the  preachers,  because  the  word  of 
God  constrains  us  not  to  do  so  ;  because  they  are 
a  people  not  fit  to  attend  to  the  sacred  calling  of  a 
Gospel  preacher.  For  Paul  teaches  Timothy,  and 
says,  '  The  things  that  thou  ha-st  heard  of  me, 
among  many  witnesses,  the  same  commit  thou  to 
faithful  men,'  etc.  Ifow  if  the  preachers  were  such 
as  the  apostles  required,  we  would  cheerfully  hear 
them, — ^we  would  be  the  first  and  last  in  the 
church 

^' We  are  also  accused  of  not  being  subject  to 
the  magistracy,  because  we  do  not  baptize  infants. 
To  this  we  reply,  we  desire  to  submit  to  the  magis- 
tracy in  all  things  not  contrary  to  the  word  of  God. 
That  we  do  not  suffer  our  children  to  be  baptized 
by  the  priests,  is  not  done  out  of  temerity,  but  we 
do  it  out  of  fear  to  God,  because  Christ  commands 
believers  to  be  baptized ;  for  Christ's  apostles  did 


JAN  PETERS  AND  HIS  FRIENDS.       235 

not  baptize  infants,  but  adults  only,  and  those  on 
their  faith  and  confession  of  their  sins-. 
If  it  had  been  the  will  of  God  that  infants  should 
be  baptized,  he  would  have  commanded  it  to  be 
done.  Christ  would  have  been  baptized  in  his  in- 
fancy as  well  as  circumcised ;  but  as  it  is  not  the 
will  of  God,  therefore  did  he  teach  them  differ- 
ently, and  received  baptism  differently  himself." 

Fourteen  women  and  a  youth  finally  received, 
as  we  have  already  seen,  the  milder  sentence  of 
banishment.  They  were  led  by  the  sheriffs  to 
the  water-side,  and  put  on  board  a  ship  at  St. 
Catherine's.  The  youth  followed,  tied  to  a  cart's 
tail,  and  was  whipped  to  the  place  of  embarkation. 
Thus  the  ties  of  nature  were  severed:  some  of  the 
poor  exiles  had  to  mourn  in  anguish  over  husbands 
and  fathers,  left  in  the  hands  of  their  persecutors, 
for  whom  yet  more  cruel  severities  were  reserved. 

The  next  day,  June  2d,  the  five  men,  who  re- 
mained of  this  company,  were  again  led  bound 
into  the  consistory.  The  terrors  of  the  stake  were 
vividly  set  before  them;  their  only  escape  was 
subscription  to  the  articles.  They  were  urged, 
they  were  threatened  ;  it  was  unavailing.  ''It  is 
a  small  matter  thus  to  die,"  said  Jan  Peters,  with 
a  courageous  mind.  The  bishop  sharply  inquired, 
"What  does  he  say?"  Peters  replied  as  before. 
The  bishop  listened  with  some  moderation,  and 
then  stoutly  said,  ''We  must  shave  such  heretics, 
and  cut  them  off  as  an  evil  thing  from  the  church." 
Said  Hendrik  Terwoort,  "  How  canst  thou  cut  us 
off  from  your  church,   since  we  are  not  of  it  ?" 


236  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

The  bishop  said,  "  It  was  all  the  same  ;  there  were 
none  in  England  who  were  not  members  of  the 
church  of  God."  And  now  were  these  friends  of 
Christ  unjustly  condemned,  and  led  away  to  'New- 
gate to  await  the  day  of  death. 

Here  they  wet^e  strongly  secured,  heavily  ironed, 
and  thrown  into  a  deep  and  noisome  den,  swarm- 
ing with  foul  and  disgusting  vermin.  "  Then  we 
thought  ourselves,"  says  Byler,  "  within  one  or  two 
days  of  the  end,  after  which  we  earnestly  longed, 
for  the  prison  was  grievous  ;  but  it  was  not  yet  the 
Lord's  will.  After  eight  days,  one  of  our  brethren 
was  released  by  death,  trusting  in  God ;  his  dying 
testimony  filled  us  with  joy."  Even  the  society  of 
thieves  and  malefactors  was  deemed  too  pure  for 
them,  both  the  bishop  and  a  preacher  saying,  that 
care  must  he  taken,  lest  the  criminals  should  be 
corrupted  by  the  association.  Great  indeed  must 
have  been  the  horror  their  opinions  had  inspired, 
when  an  English  preacher  occasionally  visiting 
their  dungeons,  would  lay  his  hands  upon  them,  and 
falling  upon  his  knees,  cry  aloud,  "  Sirs,  be  ye  con- 
verted;" and  then,  exorcising  the  devil  within 
them,  exclaim,  "  Hence,  depart,  thou  evil  fiend !" 

A  month's  reprieve  from  death  was  all  that  the 
clemency  of  the  queen  allowed.  As  Mr.  Underbill 
has  said,  "  The  month  expired,  without  any  altera- 
tion in  the  resolution  of  these  servants  of  God,  or 
in  their  fidelity  to  the  truths  they  had  received. 
Early  in  the  month  of  July,  it  was  intimated  to 
two  of  them,  that  they  must  die.  Incarcerated  in 
separate  cells,  they  were  not  permitted  to  enjoy 


JAN  PETERS  AND  HIS  FRIENDS.       237 

each  other's  society,  and  words  of  love.  On  the 
15th,  the  queen  signed,  at  Gorhambury,  the  war- 
rant and  writ  for  the  execution  to  proceed.  Jan 
Peters  and  Hendrik  Terwoort  were  the  two  se- 
^  lected. 

"  Jan  Peters  was  an  aged  inar\^  and  poor,  with 
nine  children.  His  first  wife,  some  years  before, 
had  been  burnt  for  her  religion,  at  Ghent,  in  Flan- 
ders ;  and  his  second  wife  had  lost  her  first  husband 
by  martyrdom  for  the  truth.  They  had  fled  to 
England,  hoping  there  to  worship  without  danger. 
His  circumstances  were  laid  before  the  bishop,  and 
he  had  earnestly  entreated  permission  to  leave  the 
country  with  his  wife  and  children,  but  the  bishop 
was  inexorable. 

"-  Hendrik  Terwoort  was  a  man  of  good  estate, 
five  or  six-and-twenty  years  of  age,  and  a  gold- 
smith by  trade.  He  had  been  married  about  eight 
or  ten  weeks  before  his  imprisonment.  But  neither 
domestic  affection,  nor  the  solicitations  of  his 
Mends,  nor  the  dread  of  death,  weakened  his  reso- 
lution. 

"  On  Sunday,  the  17th,  tidings  were  brought 
them,  that  within  three  days  they  would  be  burnt, 
unless  they  desired  delay.  To  this  Terwoort  re- 
plied, '  Since  this  your  design  must  come  to  pass, 
so  we  wish  you  to  speed  the  more  quickly  with 
the  matter,  for  we  would  indeed  rather  die  than 
live,  to  be  released  from  this  frightful  den.'  He, 
however,  asked  till  Friday.  We  again  quote  the 
affecting  narrative  of  their  companion  in  tribula- 
tion.    '  Upon   Tuesday,   a   stake   was   set  up   in 


238  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Smithfield,  but  the  execution  was  not  that  day. 
On  Wednesday  many  people  were  gathered  toge- 
ther to  witness  the  death  of  our  two  friends,  but 
it  was  again  deferred.  This  was  done  to  terrify, 
and  draw  our  friends  and  us  from  the  faith.  But  * 
on  Friday  our  two  friends,  Hendrik  Terwoort  and 
Jan  Peters,  being  brought  out  from  their  prison, 
were  led  to  the  sacrifice.  As  they  went  forth, 
Jan  Peters  said,  'The  holy  prophets,  and  Christ, 
our  Saviour,  have  gone  this  way  before  us,  even 
from  the  beginning,  from  Abel  until  now.' 

"  It  was  early  morning  w^hen  they  reached  the 
scene  of  their  triumph.  They  were  fastened  to 
one  stake,  neither  strangling  nor  gunpowder  being 
used  to  diminish  their  torture.  As  defenceless 
sheep  of  Christ,  following  the  footsteps  of  their 
Master,  resolutely,  for  the  name  of  Christ  they 
went  to  die.  An  English  preacher  was  present, 
to  embitter,  if  possible,  by  his  cruel  mockings,  the 
closing  moments  of  their  martyr-life,  and  martyr- 
death.  Before  all  the  people  he  exclaimed,  '  These 
men  believe  not  on  God.'  Saith  Jan  Peters,  '  We 
believe  in  one  God,  our  heavenly  Father  Almighty, 
and  in  Jesus  Christ  his  Son.'  While  standing 
bound  at  the  stake,  the  articles  were  again,  for  the 
last  time,  presented  to  them,  and  pardon  promised 
on  subscription.  Peters  again  spake,  'You  have 
labored  hard  to  drive  us  to  you,  but  now,  when 
placed  at  the  stake,  it  is  labor  in  vain.'  One  of 
the  preachers  attempted  an  excuse  :  '  That  all  such 
matters  were  determined  by  the  council,  and  that 
it   was   the   queen's   intention   they   should   die.' 


JAN  PETERS  AND  HIS  FRIENDS.       239 

'But/  said  Peters,  'You  are  the  teachers  of  the 
queen,  whom  it  behoves  you  to  instruct  better, 
therefore  shall  our  blood  be  required  at  your 
hands.' 

"  And  now  with  courage  they  entered  on  the 
conflict,  and  fought  through  the  trial,  in  the  midst 
of  the  burning  flame ;  an  oblation  to  the  Lord, 
which  they  living  oflered  unto  him — '  accepting 
not  of  deliverance.'  For  the  truth's  sake,  they 
counted  not  their  lives  dear  unto  them,  that  they 
might  finish  their  course  with  joy. 

a  i  For  what  were  thy  terrors,  0  death  ? 

And  where  was  thy  triumph,  0  grave  ? 

When  the  vest  of  pure  white  and  the  conquering  wreath 

Were  the  prize  of  the  scorner  and  slave  V 

''  We  are  saved  comment  on  this  painful  scene. 
All  writers,  of  every  party,  are  agreed  in  condem- 
nation of  its  folly  and  criminality.  '  How  utterly 
absurd  and  unchristian,'  saith  our  Dutch  martyr- 
ologist,  'do  all  such  cruel  proceedings  and  sen- 
tences as  are  here  seen,  appear,  when  contrasted 
with  the  Spirit  of  Christ!  The  Christian  host  is 
described  as  sheep  and  lambs,  sent  forth  among 
cruel  and  devouring  wolves :  who  will  be  able 
with  a  good  conscience  to  believe,  that  these  Eng- 
lish preachers  were  the  true  sheep  of  Christ,  since 
in  this  matter  they  brought  forth  so  notably  the 
fruit  of  wolves?'  " 


EDWARD   WIGHTMAN. 


In  the  early  part  of  the  reign  of  James  I.  the 
Baptists  of  England  considerably  increased;  so 
that  they  were  emboldened,  with  a  view  of  lessen- 
ing the  public  prejudice  and  of  extending  the 
truths  of  divine  revelation,  to  publish  a  confession 
of  their  faith.  But,  alas,  this  rather  increased  the 
evil  than  lessened  it ;  for  bishops  were  still  found 
who  determined  to  persecute  the  Baptists  even 
unto  death. 

In  1611,  the  very  year  of  the  publication  of  the 
commonly  received  version  of  the  Bible,  Bartholo- 
mew Legate,  charged  with  Arianism,  was  burnt  in 
Smithfield,  and  on  April  11,  1612,  Edward  Wight- 
man,  of  Burton  on  Trent,  Staffordshire,  was  called 
to  the  fire  of  martyrdom  at  Lichfield.  Among 
other  charges  brought  against  him  were  these : — 
"  That  the  baptizing  of  infants  is  an  abominable 
custom;  that  the  Lord's  supper  and  baptism  are 
not  to  be  clebrated  as  they  are  now  practised  in 
the  church  of  England ;  and  that  Christianity  is 
not  wholly  professed  and  preached  in  the  church 
of  England,  but  only  in  part.'*  Who  would  have 
thought  that  a  person  would  have  been  burnt  by 
Protestants  for  such  opinions  !  Thank  God,  we 
trust  that  this  day  of  bigotry  has  passed  for  ever. 
.  It  has  been  thought  by  Ivimey  and  others,  that 
William  Sawtry,  a  Lollard  priest,  who  was  the  first 
(240)      ^ 


EDWARD    WIGHTMAN.  241 

man  burnt  in  England  for  religion,  was  a  Baptist. 
Certainly,  Edward  Wightman,  a  Baptist,  was  the 
last  man  who  was  burnt  in  that  country  professedly 
for  his  religious  views,  though  we  have  yet  to  give 
a  painful  narrative  of  some  who  were  sacrificed  on 
the  altars  of  persecution  for  their  efforts  to  obtain 
religious  freedom.  In  the  days  of  James  a  strong 
public  opinion  had  begun  to  extend  itself  against 
these  religious  burnings,  so  that  it  was  found  un- 
safe to  persevere  in  the  practice.  Besides  which, 
very  soon  after  this,  indeed  as  early  as  1614, 
Christians  in  England  and  Wales  began  to  emi- 
grate to  this  country. 

It  will  show  the  spirit  of  the  rulers  of  those  times 
to  place  before  the  reader  the  warrant  issued  from 
the  "Dread  Sovereign"  to  the  sheriff  of  Lichfield 
to  act  out  the  wishes  of  the  bishop  who  had  con- 
demned poor  Wightman,  authorizing  the  said 
sheriff  to  put  him  to  death.  The  document  here 
follows : — 

"  The  King  to  the  sheriff  of  our  city  of  Lichfield, 
greeting : — 

"Whereas  the  reverend  father  in  Christ,  Richard, 
by  divine  providence,  of  Coventry  and  Lichfield, 
bishop,  hath  signified  unto  us,  that  he,  judicially 
proceeding,  according  to  the  exigence  of  the  eccle- 
siastical canons,  and  of  the  laws  and  customs  of 
this  our  kingdom  of  England,  against  one  Edward 
Wightman,  of  the  parish  of  Burton  upon  Trent, 
in  the  diocese  of  Coventry  and  Lichfield,  and 
upon  the  wicked  heresies  of  Ebion,  Cerinthus, 
Valentinian,  Arius,  Macedonius,    Simon  Magus, 

21 


242  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Manus,  Manichees,  Photiniis,  and  of  the  Anabap- 
tists and  other  arch  heretics  ;  and  moreover,  of 
other  cursed  opinions,  by  the  instinct  of  Satan  exi- 
cogitated,  and  heretofore  unheard  of;  the  aforesaid 
Edward  Wightman  appearing  before  the  aforesaid 
reverend  father,  and  other  divines  learned  in  the 
law,  assisting  him  in  judgment,  the  aforesaid 
wicked  crimes,  heresies,  and  other  detestable  blas- 
phemies and  errors,  stubbornly  and  pertinaciously, 
knowingly,  maliciously,  and  with  an  hardened 
heart  published,  defended  and  dispersed ;  by  de- 
finitive sentence  of  the  said  reverend  father,  with 
the  consent  of  divines  learned  in  the  law  aforesaid, 
justly,  lawfully,  and  canonically,  against  the  said 
Edward  "Wightman,  in  that  part  brought,  stands 
adjudged  and  pronounced  a  heretic;  and  there- 
fore, as  a  diseased  sheep  out  of  the  flock  of  the 
Lord,  lest  our  subjects  he  do  infect  by  his  conta- 
gion, he  hath  decreed  to  be  cast  out  and  cut  off. 

"Whereas  therefore  the  holy  mother  Church, 
hath  not  further  in  this  part  what  it  ought  more 
to  do  and  prosecute,  the  same  reverend  father,  the 
same  Edward  Wightman,  as  a  blasphemous  and 
condemned  heretic,  hath  left  to  our  secular  power 
to  be  punished  with  condign  punishment ;  as  by 
the  letters  patent  of  the  aforesaid  reverend  father, 
the  bishop  of  Coventry  and  Lichfield,  in  this  be- 
half thereupon  made,  is  certified  unto  us  in  our 
Chancery. 

"  We,  therefore,  as  a  Zealot  of  Justice,  and  a 
Defender  of  the  Catholic  faith,  and  willing  that  the 
holy  church,   and  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the 


EDWARD   WIGHTMAN.  243 

same,  and  the  Catholic  faith  to  maintain  and  de- 
fend, and  such  like  heresies  and  errors  everywhere, 
so  much  as  in  us  lies,  to  root  out  and  extirpate, 
and  heretics  so  convicted  to  punish  with  condign 
punishment,  holding  that  such  an  heretic  in  the 
aforesaid  forms  convict  and  condemned,  accord- 
ing to  the  laws  and  customs  of  this  our  kingdom 
of  England,  in  this  part  accustomed,  ought  to  he 
burned  with  fire. 

"We  command  thee,  that  thou  cause  the  said 
Edward  Wightman,  being  in  thy  custody,  to  be 
committed  to  the  fire  in  some  public  and  open 
place,  below  the  city  aforesaid,  for  the  cause  afore- 
said, before  the  people ;  and  the  same  Edward 
Wightman,  in  the  same  fire,  cause  really  to  be 
burned,  in  the  detestation  of  the  said  crime,  and 
for  manifest  example  of  other  Christians,  that 
they  may  not  fall  into  the  same  crime.  And  this 
no  ways  omit,  under  the  peril  that  shall  follow 
thereon. 

"  Witness,  etc." 

If  from  charges  so  various  and  so  vague,  we  can 
gather  anything  with  certainty,  Wightman  was 
unsound  in  his  views  of  the  Person  of  Christ. 
While  this  must  seriously  diminish  our  regard  for 
him  as  a  martyr  in  the  proper  sense  of  that  term — 
still  in  the  absence  of  clearer  evidence  we  cannot 
wholly  deny  him  that  honor. 


BENJAMIN  AND  WILLIAM  HEWLING. 


It  is  well  known  that  towards  the  close  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  England  was  ruled  by  the 
cruel  tyrant  James  II.,  who  was  at  length  driven 
from  the  throne  by  his  incensed  people,  and  suc- 
ceeded by  "William  III.  Previous  to  the  revolu- 
tion, the  Duke  of  Monmouth  and  his  party  strug- 
gled hard,  but  unsuccessfully,  for  freedom,  civil 
and  religious.  Very  many  of  the  best  Christian 
men  of  that  day,  of  all  sections  of  the  church, 
united  with  the  duke,  and  no  more  stigma  can  at- 
tach to  them,  than  would  have  been  connected 
with  the  Prince  of  Orange  and  his  friends  had 
they  been  equally  unsuccessful. 

Among  those  whose  lives  were  sacrificed  in  this 
cause  were  two  young  men,  grandsons  of  the  ven- 
erable William  Kiffin.  These  young  men  were 
brothers,  and  their  character  and  tragical  end 
made  a  very  great  impression  on  the  minds  of  the 
people  of  England.  ISToble,  in  his  History  of  the 
Protectoral  house  of  Cromwell,  thus  speaks  of 
them: — ^' These  two  amiable  but  unfortunate  gen- 
tlemen were  the  only  sons  of  Mr.  Benjamin  Hew- 
ling,  a  Turkey  merchant  of  great  fortune  in  Lon- 
don, who,  happily  for  himself,  died  before  them. 
After  their  father's  death  they  were  most  carefully 
brought  up  by  a  tender  mother,  and  their  maternal 
grandfather,  Mr.  William  Kiffin,  who,  though  very 
(244) 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM    HEWLING.  245 

much  advanced  in  years,  as  well  as  his  wife,  sur- 
vived them  both." 

The  excellent  Mr.  Kiffin,  to  whom  reference  has 
thus  been  made,  was  one  of  the  wealthiest  men 
and  one  the  most  eminent  preachers  among  the 
Baptists  of  that  day.  lie  left  a  manuscript  ac- 
count of  his  life,  written  when  in  his  seventy- 
seventh  year,  for  the  use  of  his  descendants,  and 
which  was,  a  few  years  since,  printed  in  London. 
He  gives  the  following  account : — 

"  IS'ot  long  after  the  king  died,  and  James  IT. 
coming  to  the  crown,  the  summer  after  his  coming 
the  duke  of  Monmouth  with  a  party  came  over 
with  a  few  armed  men  that  landed  at  Lyme,  and 
I  having  a  young  grandson,  William  Hewling,  at 
board  and  school  in  Holland,  he  came  over  with 
him,  although  unknown  to  me  or  any  of  his 
friends,  he  being  about  the  age  of  nineteen  years. 
And  his  eldest  brother,  Benjamin  Hewling,  con- 
versing with  those  who  were  under  great  dissatis- 
faction, seeing  popery  encouraged,  and  religion 
and  liberty  likely  to  be  invaded,  did  furnish  him- 
self with  arms,  and  went  to  the  said  duke,  and  in 
the  first  fight,  being  afterwards  both  taken  pri- 
soners, were  brought  to  Newgate,  which  to  me 
was  no  small  affliction.  And  it  being  given  out 
that  the  king  would  make  only  some  few  that 
were  taken  examples,  and  the  rest  would  leave  to 
his  officers  to  compound  for  their  lives;  I  en- 
deavored with  his  mother  to  treat  with  a  great 
man^  and  agreed  to  give  three  thousand  pounds 
for  their  lives. 

21* 


246  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

"  But  the  face  of  things  was  soon  altered,  so 
that  nothing  but  severity  could  be  expected,  and 
indeed  we  missed  the  right  door;  for  the  Lord 
Chief  Justice  [Jeffries]  finding  agreements  made 
with  others,  and  so  little  to  himself,  was  the  more 
provoked  to  use  all  manner  of  cruelty  to  the  poor 
prisoners,  so  that  few  escaped.  Amongst  the  rest 
these  two  young  men  were  executed.  But  how 
graciously  the  Lord  showed  himself  to  them,  both 
in  their  behaviour  before  their  trial  and  at  their 
deaths,  the  consideration  thereof  to  such  as  please 
to  peruse  it ;  I  think  it  may  be  of  use  to  leave  to 
you  and  to  your  children,  and  to  such  as  may  read 
the  same,  which  is  as  foUoweth. 

"  The  gracious  dealings  of  God  manifested  to 
some  in  dying  hours  have  been  of  great  advantage 
to  those  living  that  have  heard  the  same,  giving 
them  occasion  thereby  to  reflect  on  their  own 
state,  and  to  look  after  the  things  of  their  peace 
before  they  be  hid  from  their  eyes ;  also  a  great 
encouragement  to  strengthen  the  faith  of  those 
that  have  experienced  the  grace  of  God  to  them. 

^'To  that  end  it  is  thought  necessary,  by  pa- 
rents especially,  to  preserve  to  their  children  that 
remain,  those  blessed  experiences  that  such  have 
had  which  God  hath  taken  to  himself. 

"Here  then  is  presented  a  true  account  of  the 
admirable  appearances  of  God  towards  two  young 
men;  Mr.  Benjamin  Hewling,  who  died  when  he 
was  about  twenty-two  years  of  age,  and  Mr.  Wil- 
liam Hewling,  who  died  before  he  arrived  to 
twenty  years.     They  engaged  with  the  Duke  of 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM    HEWLING.  247 

Monmouth,  as  their  OMm  words  were,  for  tJie  Eng- 
lish liberties,  and  the  Protestant  religion,  and  for 
which  Mr.  William  Hewling  was  executed  at 
Lyme,  the  12th  of  September,  1685;  and  Mr, 
Benjamin  Hewling  at  Taunton,  the  30th  of  the 
same  month ;  and  however  severe  men  were  to 
them,  yet  the  blessed  dispensation  of  God  to  them 
was  such,  as  hath  made  good  his  word,  that  '  out 
of  the  mouth  of  babes  he  hath  ordained  strength, 
that  he  may  still  the  enemy  and  avenger.' 

"  After  the  dispersing  of  the  duke's  army  they 
fled  and  put  to  sea,  but  w^ere  driven  back  again, 
and  with  the  hazard  of  their  lives  got  ashore,  over 
dangerous  rocks,  where  they  saw  the  country  filled 
with  soldiers,  and  they  being  unwilling  to  fall  into 
the  hands  of  the  rabble,  and  no  way  of  defence  or 
escape  remaining  to  them,  they  surrendered  them- 
selves prisoners  to  a  gentleman  whose  house  was 
near  the  place  where  they  landed,  and  were  from 
thence  sent  to  Exeter  jail,  the  12th  of  July,  where 
remaining  sometime,  their  behaviour  was  such, 
that,  being  visited  by  many,  caused  great  respect 
towards  them,  even  of  those  that  were  enemies  to 
the  cause  they  engaged  in.  And  being  on  the 
27th  of  July  put  on  board  the  Swan  frigate,  in 
order  to  their  bringing  up  to  London,  their  car- 
riage [conduct]  was  such  as  obtained  great  kind- 
ness from  their  commander,  and  all  other  officers 
in  the  ship.  Being  brought  into  the  river,  [Thames] 
captain  Richardson  came  and  took  them  into  cus- 
tody, and  carried  them  to  E'ewgate,  putting  great 
irons  upon  them.     He  put  them  apart  from  each 


248  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

other,  without  giving  liberty  for  the  nearest  rela- 
tion to  see  them,  notwithstanding  all  endeavors 
and  entreaties  used  to  obtain  it,  though  in  the 
presence  of  a  keeper ;  which  though  it  did  greatly 
increase  the  grief  of  relations,  God,  who  wisely 
orders  all  things  for  good  to  those  he  intends 
grace  and  mercy  to,  made  this  very  restraint,  and 
hard  usage  a  blessed  advantage  to  their  souls ;  as 
may  appear  by  their  own  words,  when  after  great 
importunity  and  charge,  some  of  their  near  rela- 
tions had  leave  to  speak  a  few  words  to  them 
before  the  keeper,  to  which  they  replied,  they 
were  contented  with  the  will  of  God,  whatever  it 
should  be. 

"  Having  been  in  ^Newgate  three  weeks,  there 
was  an  order  given  to  carry  them  down  into  the 
west,  in  order  to  their  trial ;  which  being  told 
them,  they  answered,  they  were  glad  of  it ;  and  as 
they  went  out  of  N'ewgate,  several  that  beheld 
them,  seeing  them  so  cheerful,  said,  surely  they 
had  received  their  pardon,  else  they  could  never 
carry  it  with  that  courage  and  cheerfulness.  Al- 
though this  must  be  observed,  that  from  first  to 
last  whatever  hopes  they  might  have  received  from 
their  friends,  they  still  thought  the  contrary,  never 
being  much  affected  with  the  hopes  of  it,  nor  cast 
down,  nor  the  least  discouraged  at  the  worst  that 
man  could  do.  In  their  journey  to  Dorchester, 
the  keepers  that  went  with  them  have  given  this 
account,  '  that  their  carriage  was  so  grave,  serious, 
and  Christian,  that  made  them  admire  to  see  and 
hear  what  they  did  from  such  young  men.' 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM   HEWLING.  249 

"A  near  relation  [a  sister]  that  went  into  the 
west  to  see  the  issue  of  things,  and  to  perform 
whatsoever  should  be  necessar}^  for  them,  gives 
the  following  account: — *  At  Salisbury,  the  30th  of 
August,  I  had  the  first  opportunity  of  conversing 
with  them.  I  found  them  in  a  very  excellent  com- 
posure of  mind,  declaring  their  experience  of  the 
grace  and  goodness  of  God  to  them  in  all  their 
sufferings,  in  supporting  and  strengthening  them, 
and  providing  for  them,  turning  the  hearts  of  all 
in  whose  hands  they  had  been,  both  at  Exeter  and 
on  shipboard,  to  show  pity  and  to  favor  them ; 
although  since  they  came  to  Ifewgate  they  were 
hardly  used,  and  now  in  their  journey  loaded  with 
heavy  irons  and  more  inhumanly  dealt  with.  They 
with  great  cheerfulness  professed  that  they  were 
better  and  in  a  more  happy  condition  than  ever  in 
their  lives,  from  the  sense  they  had  of  the  pardon- 
ing love  of  God  in  Jesus  Christ  to  their  souls; 
wholly  referring  themselves  to  their  wise  and 
gracious  God  to  choose  for  them  life  or  death,  ex- 
pressing themselves  —  Anything  what  pleaseth 
God,  what  he  sees  best,  so  be  it.  We  know  he 
is  able  to  deliver;  but  if  not,  blessed  be  his  name; 
death  is  not  terrible  now,  but  desirable.  Mr.  Ben- 
jamin Hewling  particularly  added,  As  for  the 
world,  there  is  nothing  in  it  to  make  it  worth 
while  to  live,  except  we  may  be  serviceable  to 
God  therein.  He  afterwards  said,  Oh !  God  is  a 
strong  refuge :  I  have  found  him  so  indeed  ! 

"  '  The  next  opportunity  I  had  was  at  Dorches- 
ter, whither  they  were  both  carried,  and  remained 


250  BAPTIST   MARTYES. 

together  four  days.  By  reason  of  their  strait  con- 
finement, our  conversation  was  much  interrupted; 
but  this  appeared,  that  they  had  still  the  same 
presence  and  support  from  God,  no  way  discour- 
aged at  the  approach  of  their  trial,  nor  at  the  event 
of  it,  whatever  it  should  be.  The  6th  of  Septem- 
ber, Mr.  Benjamin  Hewling  was  ordered  to  Taun- 
ton, to  be  tried  there.  Taking  my  leave  of  him, 
he  said,  Oh,  blessed  be  God  for  afflictions.  I 
would  not  have  been  without  them  for  all  this 
world. 

"^I  remained  still  at  Dorchester  to  wait  the 
issue  of  Mr.  William  Hew^ling,  to  whom,  after 
trial,  I  had  free  access,  and  whose  discourse  was 
much  filled  with  the  admirings  of  the  grace  of 
God  which  had  been  manifested  towards  him  in 
calling  him  out  of  his  natural  state.  He  said, 
God  by  his  Holy  Spirit  did  suddenly  seize  upon 
his  heart  when  he  thought  not  of  it,  in  his  retired 
abode  in  Holland,  as  it  were  secretly  whispering 
in  his  heart,  Seek  ye  my  face,  enabling  him  to  an- 
swer his  gracious  call  and  to  reflect  upon  his  own 
soul,  shewing  him  the  evil  of  sin  and  the  necessity 
of  Christ,  from  that  time  carrying  him  on  to  a 
sensible  adherence  to  Christ  for  justification  and 
eternal  life.  Hence  he  found  a  spring  of  joy  and 
sweetness  beyond  the  comforts  of  the  whole  earth. 
He  also  said  that  he  could  not  but  admire  the 
wonderful  goodness  of  God  in  so  preparing  him 
for  what  he  was  bringing  him  to,  which  then  he 
thought  not  of;  giving  him  hope  of  eternal  life 
before  he  called  him  to  look  death  in  the  face,  so 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM    HEWLING.  251 

that  he  did  cheerfully  resign  his  life  to  God  before 
he  came,  having  sought  his  guidance  in  it ;  and 
that  both  then  and  now,  the  cause  did  appear  to  him 
very  glorious,  notwithstanding  all  he  had  suffered 
in  it,  or  what  he  farther  might  suffer;  although 
for  our  sins,  God  had  v>^ithheld  these  good  things 
from  us.  But  he  said,  God  carried  on  his  blessed 
work  on  his  own  soul  in  and  by  all  his  sufferings ; 
and  whatever  the  will  of  God  were,  life  or  death, 
he  knew  it  would  be  best  for  him. 

"  '  After  he  had  received  his  sentence,  when  he 
returned  to  prison,  he  said,  Methinks  I  find  my 
spiritual  comforts  increasing  ever  since  my  sen- 
tence. There  is  no  condemation  to  them  who  are 
in  Christ  Jesus.  It  is  God  that  justifieth;  who 
shall  condemn?  When  I  came  to  him  the  next 
morning,  when  he  had  received  news  that  he  must 
die  the  next  day,  and  in  order  to  it  was  to  be  car- 
ried to  Lyme  that  day,  I  found  him  in  a  more  ex- 
cellent, raised,  and  spiritual  frame  than  before. 
He  was  satisfied,  he  said,  that  God  had  chosen 
best  for  him.  He  knows  what  the  temptations  of 
life  might  have  been.  I  might  have  lived  and 
forgotten  God ;  but  now  I  am  going  where  I  shall 
sin  no  more.  Oh,  it  is  a  blessed  thing  to  be  freed 
from  sin,  and  to  be  with  Christ !  Oh,  how  great 
w^ere  the  sufferings  of  Christ  for  me,  beyond  all  I 
can  undergo  !  How  great  is  that  glory  to  which  I 
am  going ;  it  will  soon  swallow  up  all  our  suffer- 
ings here ! 

"  '  While  he  was  at  dinner,  just  before  his  going 
to  Lyme,  he  dropped  many  abrupt  expressions  of 


252  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

his  inward  joy,  such  as  these ; — Oh,  the  grace  of 
God ;  the  love  of  Christ !  Oh,  that  blessed  supper 
of  the  Lamb ;  to  be  for  ever  with  the  Lord !  He 
farther  said.  When  I  went  to  Holland,  you  know 
not  what  sins,  snares,  and  miseries  I  might  have 
fallen  into,  nor  whether  we  should  ever  meet 
again ;  but  now  you  know  whither  I  am  going, 
and  that  we  shall  certainly  have  a  joyful  meeting. 
He  said.  Pray  give  my  particular  recommendations 
to  all  my  friends,  with  acknowledgments  for  all 
their  kindness.  I  advise  them  all  to  make  sure 
of  an  interest  in  Christ,  for  he  is  the  only  comfort 
when  we  come  to  die. 

"  '  One  of  the  prisoners  seemed  to  be  troubled 
at  the  manner  in  which  they  were  to  die ;  to  whom 
he  said,  I  bless  God  that  I  am  reconciled  to  it  all. 
Just  as  he  was  going  to  Lyme,  he  wrote  these  few 
lines  to  a  friend,  being  hardly  suffered  to  stay  so 
long : — I  am  going  to  launch  into  eternity,  I  hope 
and  trust,  into  the  arms  of  my  blessed  Redeemer ; 
to  whom  I  commit  you,  and  all  my  dear  relations. 
My  duty  to  my  dear  mother,  and  love  to  all  my 
sisters,  and  the  rest  of  my  friends. 

"  'William  Hewling.' 

"As  they  passed  through  the  town  of  Dor- 
chester to  Lyme,  multitudes  of  people  beheld 
them  with  great  lamentations,  admiring  his  de- 
portment at  parting  with  his  sister.  Passing  on 
the  road,  his  discourse  was  exceedingly  spiritual, 
taking  occasion  from  everything  to  speak  of  the 
glory  they  were  going  to.  Looking  at  the  coun- 
try as  they  passed,  he  said,  '  This  is  a  glorious 


BENJAMIN   AND    WILLIAM   HEWLING.  253 

creation ;  but  what  tlien  is  the  paradise  of  God  to 
which  we  are  going !  It  is  but  a  few  hours,  and 
we  shall  be  there,  and  be  for  ever  with  the  Lord  !' 
^'At  Lyme,  just  before  they  went  to  die,  reading 
John  xiv.  18,  he  said  to  one  of  his  fellow-suflerers, 
'  Here  is  a  sweet  promise  for  us,  I  will  not  leave 
you  comfortless^  I  will  come  unto  you.  Christ  will 
be  with  us  to  the  last.'  A  friend  taking  leave  of 
him,  he  said,  'Farewell  till  we  meet  in  heaven. 
Presently  I  shall  be  with  Christ.  Oh,  I  would  not 
change  condition  with  any  one  in  this  world !  I 
would  not  stay  behind  for  ten  thousand  worlds  !' 

"To  another  who  asked  him  how  he  did,  he 
said,  'Very  well,  blessed  be  God.'  And  farther 
asking  him  whether  he  could  look  death  in  the 
face  with  comfort  now  it  approached  so  near,  he 
said,  '  Yes,  I  bless  God  I  can  with  great  comfort. 
God  hath  made  this  a  good  night  to  me  :  my  com- 
forts are  much  increased  since  I  left  Dorchester.' 
Then  taking  leave  of  him,  he  said,  '  Farewell,  I 
shall  see  you  no  more.'  To  which  he  replied, 
'How,  see  me  no  more  ?  Yes,  I  hope  to  meet  you 
in  glory.'  To  another,  who  was  with  him  to  the 
last,  he  said,  '  Pray  remember  my  dear  love  to  my 
brother  and  sister,  and  tell  them  I  desire  they 
would  comfort  themselves  that  I  am  gone  to  Jesus, 
and  we  shall  quickly  meet  in  Zion  above.' 

"  Afterwards  he  prayed  for  about  three  quarters 
of  an  hour  with  the  greatest  fervency,  exceedingly 
blessing  God  for  Jesus  Christ,  adoring  the  riches 
of  his  grace  in  him,  in  all  the  glorious  fruits  of  it 
towards  him,  praying  for  the  peace  of  the  church 

22 


254  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

of  God  and  of  these  nations  in  particular ;  all  with 
such  eminent  assistance  of  the  Spirit  of  God  as 
convinced,  astonished,  and  melted  into  pity  the 
hearts  of  all  present,  even  the  most  malicious  ad- 
versaries, forcing  tears  and  expressions  from  them ; 
some  saying  they  knew  not  what  would  become 
of  them  after  death,  but  it  was  evident  he  was 
going  to  great  happiness. 

"When  just  departing  out  of  the  world,  with  a 
joyful  countenance  he  said,  '  Oh,  now  my  joy  and 
comfort  is  that  I  have  a  Christ  to  go  to ;'  and  so 
sweetly  resigned  his  spirit  to  Christ,  on  the  12th 
of  September,  1685. 

''  An  officer  who  had  shown  so  malicious  a 
spirit  as  to  call  the  prisoners  devils,  when  he  was 
guarding  them  down,  was  now  so  convinced,  that 
he  afterwards  told  a  person  of  quality  that  he 
never  was  so  affiscted  as  by  his  cheerful  carriage 
and  fervent  prayer,  such  as  he  believed  was  never 
heard,  especially  from  one  so  young ;  and  added, 
'  I  believe  that  if  the  lord  chief  justice  had  been 
there,  he  would  not  have  let  him  die.'  The  sheriff 
having  given  his  body  to  be  buried,  although  it 
was  brought  from  the  place  of  execution  without 
any  notice  given,  yet  very  many  of  the  town,  to 
the  number  of  two  hundred,  came  to  accompany 
him ;  and  several  young  women  of  the  best  of  the 
town  laid  him  in  his  grave  in  Lyme  church-yard, 
September  13,  1685. 

"After  this  event  his  sister  wrote  to  her  mo- 
ther : — '  Although  I  have  nothing  to  acquaint  my 
dear  mother  withal,  but  what  is  most  afflictive  to 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM   HEWLING.  255 

sense,  both  as  to  the  determination  of  God's  will 
and  as  to  my  present  apprehension  concerning  my 
brother  Benjamin  who  still  remains ;  yet  there  is 
such  an  abundant  consolation  mixed  in  both,  that 
I  only  wanted  an  opportunity  to  pay  this  duty ; 
God  having  wrought  so  glorious  a  work  on  both 
their  souls,  revealing  Christ  in  them,  that  death  is 
become  their  friend.  My  brother  William  having 
already,  with  the  greatest  joy,  declared  to  those 
that  were  with  him  to  the  last,  that  he  w^ould  not 
change  conditions  with  any  that  were  to  remain 
in  this  world,  and  he  desired  that  his  relations 
would  comfort  themselves  that  he  is  gone  to 
Christ.  My  brother  Benjamin  expects  not  long 
to  continue  in  this  world,  and  is  quite  willing  to 
leave  it  when  God  shall  call ;  being  fully  satisfied 
that  God  will  choose  what  is  best  for  him  and  for 
us  all.  By  these  things  God  doth  greatly  support 
me,  and  I  hope  you  also,  my  dear  mother,  which 
was  and  is  my  brother's  great  desire.  There  is 
still  room  to  pray  for  one  ;  and  God  having  so  an- 
swered, though  not  in  kind,  we  have  encourage- 
ment still  to  wait  on  him. 

'Honored  mother, 

'Your  dutiful  daughter.' 
"When  I  came  to  Taunton  to  Mr.  Benjamin 
Hewling,  he  had  received  the  news  of  his  brother's 
being  gone  to  die  with  so  much  comfort  and  joy, 
and  afterwards  of  the  continued  goodness  of  God 
in  increasing  it  to  the  end,  on  which  he  expressed 
himself  to  this  effect — We  have  no  cause  to  fear 
death,  if  the  presence  of  God  be  with  us,  there  is 


256  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

no  evil  in  it,  the  sting  being  taken  away.  It  is 
nothing  but  our  ignorance  of  the  glory  the  saints 
pass  into  by  death  which  makes  it  appear  dark  to 
ourselves  or  our  relations.  K  in  Christ,  what  is 
this  world  that  we  should  desire  an  abode  in  it? 
It  is  all  vain  and  unsatisfying,  full  of  sin  and 
misery.  He  also  intimated  his  own  cheerful  expec- 
tations soon  to  follow,  discovering  then  and  all 
along  great  seriousness  and  sense  of  spiritual  and 
eternal  things,  complaining  of  nothing  in  his  pre- 
sent circumstances  but  want  of  a  place  of  retire- 
ment to  converse  more  uninterruptedly  with  God 
and  his  own  soul ;  saying  that  his  lonely  time  in 
IS'ewgate  was  the  sweetest  in  his  whole  life.  He 
said  God  had  sometime  before  struck  his  heart, 
when  he  thought  of  the  haz-ard  of  his  life,  to  some 
serious  sense  of  his  past  life,  and  the  great  con- 
sequences of  death  and  eternity;  showing  him 
that  they  were  the  only  happy  persons  who  had 
secured  their  eternal  state,  the  folly  and  madness 
of  the  ways  of  sin  and  his  own  thraldom  therein, 
with  his  utter  inability  to  deliver  himself,  also  the 
necessity  of  Christ  for  salvation.  He  said  he  was 
not  without  terror  and  amazement  for  some  time 
when  he  had  the  sight  of  unpardoned  sin  and  eter- 
nity before  him.  But  God  wonderfully  opened  to 
him  the  riches'  of  free  grace  in  Christ  Jesus  for 
poor  sinners  to  flee  to,  enabling  him  to  look  alone 
to  a  crucified  Christ  for  salvation.  He  said  this 
blessed  work  was  in  some  measure  carried  on 
upon  his  soul  amidst  all  his  business  and  hurries  in 
the   army,   but   never   sprung   forth  so  fully  and 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM    HEWLING.  257 

sweetly  till  his  close  confinement  in  I^ewgate. 
There  he  saw  Christ  and  all  spiritual  objects  more 
clearly,  and  embraced  them  more  strongly ;  there 
he  experienced  the  blessedness  of  a  reconciled 
state,  the  excellency  of  the  way  of  holiness,  the 
delightfulness  of  communion  with  God,  which  re- 
mained with  deep  and  apparent  impressions  on  his 
own  soul,  which  he  frequently  expressed  with  ad- 
miration of  the  grace  of  God  towards  him. 

"  Perhaps  my  friends,  said  he,  may  think  this 
the  saddest  summer  of  my  life  ;  but,  I  bless  God, 
it  hath  been  the  sweetest  and  happiest  of  it  all ; 
nay,  there  is  nothing  else  that  deserves  the  name 
of  happiness.  I  have  sought  satisfaction  from  the 
things  of  this  world,  but  I  never  found  it.  But 
now  I  have  found  rest  for  my  soul  in  God  alone. 

''  Oh  how  great  is  our  blindness  by  nature ; 
till  God  opens  our  eyes  we  can  see  no  excellency 
in  spiritual  things,  but  spend  our  precious  time  in 
pursuing  shadows,  and  are  deaf  to  all  the  invita- 
tions of  grace  and  glorious  offers  of  the  gospel. 
How  just  is  God  in  depriving  us  of  that  we  so 
much  slighted  and  abused.  Oh,  his  infinite  pa- 
tience and  goodness,  that  after  all  he  should  sanc- 
tify any  methods  to  bring  a  sinner  to  himself! 
Oh,  electing  love  !  distinguishing  grace  !  What 
great  cause  have  I  to  admire  and  adore  it !  What 
an  amazing  consideration  is  the  suftering  of  Christ 
for  sin  to  bring  us  to  God  !  His  suffering  from 
wicked  men  was  exceedingly  great ;  but  alas,  what 
was  that  to  the  sorrows  of  his  soul  under  the  in- 
finite wrath  of  God !     This  mystery  of  grace  and 


258  BAPTIST    MARTYHS. 

love  is  enoiigli  to  swallow  up  our  thoughts  to  all 
eternity. 

"  As  to  his  own  death,  he  would  often  say,  he 
saw  no  reason  to  expect  any  other.  I  know  God 
is  infinitely  able  to  deliver,  and  am  sure  he  will  do 
it,  if  it  be  for  his  glory  and  my  good.  In  which, 
I  bless  God,  I  am  fully  satisfied.  It  is  all  my  de- 
sire that  he  would  choose  for  me,  and  then  I  am 
sure  it  will  be  best,  whatever  it  be.  For  truly  un- 
less God  have  some  work  for  me  to  do  in  the  world 
■^or  his  service  and  glory,  I  see  nothing  else  to 
make  life  desirable.  In  the  present  state  of  affairs, 
there  is  nothing  to  cast  our  eyes  upon  but  sin,  sor- 
row, and  misery ;  and  were  things  ever  so  agree- 
able to  our  desires,  it  is  but  the  world  still,  which 
will  never  be  a  resting  place.  Heaven  is  the  only 
state  of  rest  and  happiness ;  there  we  shall  be  per- 
fectly free  from  sin  and  temptation,  and  enjoy  God 
without  interruption  for  ever. 

"Speaking  of  the  disappointment  of  their  ex- 
pectations in  the  work  they  had  undertaken,  he 
said,  "With  reference  to  the  glory  of  God,  the  pros- 
perity of  the  Gospel,  and  the  delivery  of  the  peo- 
ple of  God,  we  have  great  cause  to  lament  it ;  but 
for  that  outward  prosperity  which  would  have  ac- 
companied it,  it  is  of  small  moment  in  itself.  As 
it  would  not  satisfy,  so  neither  could  it  be  abiding ; 
for  at  longest,  death  would  have  put  an  end  to  it 
all.  Also  adding,  ISTay,  perhaps  we  might  have 
been  so  foolish  as  to  be  taken  with  part  of  it,  to 
the  neglect  of  our  eternal  concerns ;  and  then  I 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM   HEWLING.  259 

am  sure  our  present  circumstances  are  incalcula- 
bly better. 

"  He.  frequently  expressed  great  concern  for 
the  glory  of  God,  and  affection  to  his  people,  say- 
ing, If  my  death  may  advance  God's  glory,  and 
hasten  the  deliverance  of  his  people,  it  is  enough. 
Saying  it  was  a  great  comfort  to  him  to  think  of 
so  great  a  privilege  as  that  of  having  an  interest 
in  all  their  prayers.  In  his  conversation  he  par- 
ticularly delighted  in  those  persons  in  whom  he 
saw  most  holiness  shining ;  also  great  pity  to  the 
souls  of  others,  saying  that  the  remembrance  of 
our  former  vanity  may  well  cause  compassion  to- 
wards others  in  that  state.  In  his  conversation  he 
prompted  them  to  seriousness,  telling  them  that 
death  and  eternity  were  such  weighty  concerns 
that  they  deserved  the  utmost  attention  of  our 
minds ;  for  the  way  to  receive  death  cheerfully  is 
to  prepare  for  it  seriously;  and  if  God  should 
please  to  spare  our  lives,  surely  we  have  the  same 
reason  to  be  serious,  and  spend  our  remaining 
days  in  his  fear  and  service.  He  also  took  great 
care  that  the  worship  of  God,  which  they  were  in 
a  capacity  of  maintaining  there,  might  be  duly 
performed;  as  reading,  praying,  and  singing  of 
psalms,  in  which  he  evidently  took  great  delight. 

"  For  those  three  or  four  days  before  theii 
deaths,  when  there  was  a  general  report  that  no 
more  should  die,  he  said,  I  do  not  know  what 
God  hath  done,  contrary  to  our  expectations.  If 
he  doth- prolong  my  life,  I  am  sure  it  is  all  his 
own,  and  by  his  grace  I  will  wholly  devote  it  to 


260  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

him.  But  on  the  29th  of  September,  about  ten  or 
eleven  at  night,  we  found  the  deceitful n ess  of  this 
report,  they  being  then  told  that  they  must  die 
the  next  morning,  which  was  very  unexpected  as 
to  the  suddenness  of  it.  But  herein  God  glorified 
his  power,  grace,  and  faithfulness,  in  giving  suita- 
ble support  and  comfort  by  his  blessed  presence, 
which  appeared  upon  my  coming  to  him  at  that 
time,  and  finding  him  greatly  composed.  He  said. 
Though  men  design  to  surprise,  God  doth  and 
will  perform  his  word,  to  be  a  very  present  help  in 
trouble. 

"  The  next  morning,  when  I  saw  him  again, 
his  cheerfulness  and  comfort  were  much  increased, 
waiting  for  the  sheriff  with  the  greatest  sweetness 
and  serenity  of  mind;  saying,  ISTow  the  will  of 
God  is  determined,  to  whom  I  have  referred  it, 
and  he  hath  chosen  most  certainly  what  is  best ! 
Afterwards,  with  a  smiling  countenance,  he  dis- 
coursed of  the  glory  of  heaven,  remarking  with 
much  delight  the  third,  fourth,  and  fifth  verses  of 
the  twenty-second  of  the  Kevelations  : — ^And  there 
shall  be  no  more  curse ;  but  the  throne  of  God 
and  of  the  Lamb  shall  be  in  it,  and  his  servants 
shall  serve  him,  and  they  shall  see  his  face,  and 
his  name  shall  be  in  their  foreheads;  and  there 
shall  be  no  night  there,  and  they  shall  need  no 
candle,  nor  light  of  the  sun ;  and  they  shall  reign 
for  ever  and  ever.  Then  he  said,  Oh,  what  a 
happy  state  is  this !  Shall  we  be  loth  [unwilling] 
to  go  and  enjoy  this  ? 

"  He  then  desired  to  be  read  to  him,  2  Cor.  v. 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAN   HEWLINa.  2&1 

1,  2.  For  we  know  that  if  our  earthly  house  of 
this  tabernacle  were  dissolved,  we  have  a  building 
of  God,  a  house  not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in 
the  heavens,  etc.  His  hope  and  comfort  still  in- 
creasing, with  the  assurance  of  an  interest  in  that 
glorious  inheritance  to  the  possession  of  which  he 
was  now  going,  he  said  death  was  more  desirable 
than  life,  and  he  would  rather  die  than  live  any 
longer  here. 

^'  As  to  the  manner  of  his  death,  he  said.  When 
I  have  considered  others  under  these  circumstances, 
I  have  thought  it  very  dreadful ;  but  now  God 
hath  called  me  to  it,  I  bless  him  that  I  have  quite 
other  apprehensions  of  it.  I  can  now  cheerfully 
embrace  it  as  an  easy  passage  to  glory;  and 
though  death  separates  from  the  enjoyment  of 
each  other  here,  it  will  be  but  for  a  very  short 
time,  and  then  we  shall  meet  in  such  enjoyments 
as  now  we  cannot  conceive  of,  and  for  ever  rejoice 
in  each  other's  happiness. 

"  Then  reading  the  Scriptures  and  musing  with 
himself,  he  intimated  the  great  comfort  which  God 
conveyed  to  his  soul  in  it;  saying,  Oh,  what  an 
invaluable  treasure  is  this  blessed  word  of  God ! 
In  all  conditions  here  is  a  store  of  strong  consola- 
tion !  A  friend  desiring  his  Bible,  he  said,  'No : 
this  shall  be  my  companion  to  the  last  moment  of 
my  life. 

"Thus  praying  together,  reading,  meditating, 
and  conversing  of  heavenly  things,  they  waited  for 
the  sheriff,  who,  when  he  came,  void  of  all  pity  or 
civility,  hurried  them  away,  scarcely  suffering  them 


262  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

to  take  leave  of  their  friends.  'JS'otwithstanding 
this,  and  the  bitter  mourning  of  all  about  them, 
the  joyfulness  of  his  countenance  was  increased. 
Thus  he  left  the  prison,  and  thus  he  appeared  in 
the  sledge,  where  they  sat  about  half  an  hour  be- 
fore the  officers  could  force  the  horses  to  draw ;  at 
which  they  were  greatly  enraged,  there  being  no 
visible  obstruction  from  weight  or  way.  At  last 
the  mayor  and  sheriff  haled  them  forwards  them- 
selves, Balaam-like,  driving  the  horses. 

''  When  they  came  to  the  place  of  execution, 
which  was  surrounded  with  spectators,  many  that 
waited  their  coming,  said,  that  when  they  saw 
him  and  them  come  with  such  cheerfulness  and 
joy,  and  evidence  of  the  presence  of  God  with 
them,  it  made  death  appear  with  another  aspect. 
They  first  embraced  each  other  with  the  greatest 
affection ;  then  two  of  the  elder  persons  praying 
audibly,  they  joined  with  great  seriousness.  Then 
he  required  leave  of  the  sheriff*  to  pray  particu- 
larly ;  but  he  would  not  grant  it,  and  only  asked 
him  whether  he  would  pray  for  the  king.  He  an- 
swered, 'I  pray  for  all  men.'  He  then  requested 
that  they  might  sing  a  hymn.  The  sheriff  told 
him  it  must  be  with  the  rope  about  their  necks ; 
which  they  cheerfully  accepted,  and  sung  with 
such  heavenly  joy  and  sweetness  that  many  who 
were  present  said,  that  it  both  broke  and  rejoiced 
their  hearts.  Thus  in  the  experience  of  the  de- 
lightfulness  of  praising  God  on  earth,  he  willingly 
closed  his  eyes  on  a  vain  world,  to  pass  to  that 
eternal  enjoyment,  on  September  30,  1685. 


BENJAMIN   AND   WILLIAM    HEWLING.  2G3 

"  All  present  of  all  sorts  were  exceedingly  af- 
fected and  amazed.  Some  officers  who  had  before 
insultingly  said,  Surely  these  persons  have  no 
thoughts  of  death,  but  will  find  themselves  sur- 
prised by  it,  now  acknowledged  that  they  saw  he 
and  they  had  something  extrordinary  within,  which 
carried  them  through  with  so  much  joy.  Others 
said  that  they  were  so  convinced  of  their  happi- 
ness, that  they  would  be  glad  to  change  conditions 
with  them.  The  soldiers  in  general,  and  all  others, 
lamented  exceedingly,  saying,  it  was  so  sad  a  thing 
to  see  them  so  cut  off  that  they  scarcely  knew  how 
to  bear  it.  Some  of  the  most  malicious  in  the 
place,  from  whom  nothing  but  railing  was  ex- 
pected, said,  as  they  were  carried  to  their  grave  in 
Taunton  church,  '  These  persons  have  left  sufficient 
evidence  tha.t  they  are  now  glorified  spirits  in 
heaven.'  A  great  officer  also  in  the  king's  army 
has  often  been  heard  to  say,  '  If  you  would  learn  to 
die,  go  to  the  young  men  of  Taunton.'  Much 
more  was  uttered  by  these  good  men,  which  showed 
the  blessed  frame  of  their  hearts,  to  the  glory  of 
divine  grace.     But  this  is  what  occurs  to  memory. 

^'Mr.  Benjamin  Hewling,  about  two  hours  be- 
fore his  death,  wrote  the  following  letter,  which 
showed  his  great  composure  of  mind : — 

"  ^  HoNoiiED  Mother, 

"  '  That  news  which  I  know  you  have  a  great 
while  feared,  and  we  expected,  I  must  now  ac- 
quaint you  with ;  that  notwithstanding  the  hopes 
you   gave  in  your  two  last  letters,  warrants  are 


264  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

come  for  my  execution,  and  within  tliese  few 
hours  I  expect  it  to  be  performed. 

"  '  Blessed  be  the  Almighty  God,  who  gives 
comfort  and  support  in  such  a  day !  How  ought 
we  to  magnify  his  holy  name  for  all  his  mercies, 
that  when  we  were  running  on  in  a  course  of  sin 
he  should  stop  us  in  our  full  career,  and  show  us 
that  Saviour  whom  we  had  pierced,  and  out  of  his 
free  grace  enable  us  to  look  upon  him  with  an  eye 
of  faith,  believing  him  able  to  save  to  the  uttermost 
all  such  as  come  to  him !  Oh,  admirable  long- 
suffering  patience  of  God ;  that  when  we  were  dis- 
honoring his  name,  he  did  not  take  that  time  to 
bring  honor  to  himself  by  our  destruction  ?  But 
he  delighteth  not  in  the  death  of  a  sinner,  but  had 
rather  he  should  turn  to  him  and  live ;  and  he  hath 
many  ways  pf  bringing  his  own  to  himself.  Blessed 
be  his  holy  name,  he  has  taught  my  heart  in  some 
measure  to  be  conformable  to  his  w^ill,  which 
worketh  patience,  and  patience  experience,  and 
experience  hope,  which  maketh  not  ashamed. 

^''I  bless  God  that  I  am  not  ashamed  of  the 
cause  for  which  I  lay  down  my  life ;  and  as  I  have 
engaged  in  it,  and  fought  for  it,  so  now  I  am  go- 
ing to  seal  it  with  my  blood.  The  Lord  will  still 
carry  on  the  same  cause  which  hath  been  long  on 
foot ;  and  though  we  die  in  it  and  for  it,  I  question 
not  but  in  his  own  good  time  he  will  raise  up  other 
instruments  more  worthy  to  carry  it  on  to  the 
glory  of  his  name,  and  the  advancement  of  his 
church  and  people. 

" '  Honored   mother,   I  know  there    has  been 


BENJAMIN   AND    WILLIAM   HEWLING.  265 

nothing  left  undone  by  you  or  my  friends  for  the 
saving  of  my  life,  for  which  I  return  many  hearty 
acknowledgements  to  yourself  and  to  them  all; 
and  it  is  my  dying  request  to  you  and  them,  to 
pardon  all  undutifulness  and  unkindness  in  every 
relation.  Pray  give  my  duty  to  my  grandfather 
and  grandmother  ;  service  to  my  uncles  and  aunts ; 
and  my  dear  love  to  all  my  sisters ;  to  every  re- 
lation and  friend  a  particular  recommendation. 
Pray  tell  them  all  how  precious  an  interest  in 
Christ  is  when  we  come  to  die  ;  and  advise  them 
never  to  rest  in  a  Christless  state.  For  if  we  are 
his,  it  is  no  matter  what  the  world  do  to  us ;  they 
can  but  kill  the  body,  and  blessed  be  God,  for  the 
soul  is  out  of  their  reach.  I  question  not  but  their 
malice  wishes  the  damnation  of  that,  as  w^ell 
as  the  destruction  of  the  body,  which  has  too 
evidently  appeared  by  their  deceitful  flattering 
promises. 

''  'I  commit  you  all  to  the  care  and  protection 
of  God,  who  has  promised  to  be  a  Father  to  the 
fatherless,  and  a  husband  to  the  widow,  and  to 
supply  the  want  of  every  relation.  The  Lord  God 
of  heaven  be  your  comfort  under  these  sorrows, 
and  your  refuge  from  those  miseries  w^hich  we 
may  easily  foresee  coming  upon  poor  England, 
and  the  poor  distressed  people  of  God  in  it.  The 
Lord  carry  you  through  this  vale  of  tears  with  a 
resigning  submissive  spirit;  and  at  last  bring  you 
to  himself  in  glory ;  where  I  question  not  but  you 
will  meet  your  dying  son, 

'  Benjamin  HEWLiNa.'  " 
23 


266  BAPTIST    MARTYES. 

Mr.  Kiffin  adds  to  this  statement,  "Only  for 
myself  it  was  a  great  comfort  to  me,  and  is  to 
observe  what  testimony  they  left  behind  of  that 
blessed  interest  they  had  in  the  Lord  Jesus,  and 
their  humble  and  holy  confidence  of  their  eternal 
happiness. 

"  One  thing  I  think  it  necessary  to  observe,  that 
at  the  trial  of  William  Hewling,  the  Lord  Chief 
Justice  Jefferies  was  pleased  in  public  court,  to  tell 
him,  that  his  grandfather  did  as  well  deserve  that 
death,  which  he  was  likely  to  suffer,  as  they  did. 
Which  I  mention  to  that  end,  that  thereby  it  may 
be  seen  what  an  eye  they  had  upon  me  for  my 
ruin,  if  the  Lord,  who  hath  watched  over  me  for 
good,  had  not  prevented." 

The  relative  who  has  been  described  as  attend- 
ing these  lovely  young  men  in  the  west,  and  from 
whom  Mr.  Kiffin  received  his  account,  was  their 
sister,  Hannah  Hewling,  who,  about  a  year  after- 
wards, married  Major  Henry  Cromwell,  and  who 
died  in  1731.  When  all  other  means  had  failed, 
she  determined  to  present  a  petition  to  the  king. 
For  this  purpose  she  was  introduced  by  Lord 
Churchill,  afterwards  Duke  of  Marlborough. 
While  they  waited  in  the  ante-chamber  for  ad- 
mittance, standing  near  the  chimney-piece.  Lord 
Churchill  assured  her  of  his  most  hearty  wishes 
for  the  success  of  her  petition.  "  But,"  he  added, 
"Madam,  I  dare  not  flatter  you  with  any  such 
hopes,  for  that  marble  is  as  capable  of  feeling  com- 
passion as  the  king's  heart." 

Noble  says,   "  It  has  been  said  in  most  of  the 


BENJAMIN   AND    WILLIAM    HEWLING.  267 

accounts  that  have  been  published,  that  Lord 
Chief  Justice  Jefferies  always  treated  Hannah 
Hewling  according  to  his  usual  custom,  with  the 
greatest  brutality ;  but  this  is  not  true ;  for  Jef- 
feries always  treated  her  with  the  greatest  polite- 
ness and  respect.  This  fact,  however,  does  not 
much  soften  the  horrors  of  his  general  character. 
Jefferies  had  a  relation  from  whose  fortune  he  had 
formed  great  expectations ;  and  as  this  relation 
was  an  intimate  acquaintance  of  the  Hewlings,  he 
exerted  himself  very  warmly  with  him  on  their 
behalf.  He  repeatedly  protested  to  the  chief  jus- 
tice, that  the  continuance  of  his  friendship  together 
with  every  benefit  he  might  hope  to  result  from 
it,  depended  entirely  on  his  using  every  endeavor 
to  save  the  Hewlings.  This,  Jefferies  declared 
that  he  did ;  but  he  always  said  that  the  king  was 
inexorable. 

''  For  many  reasons,''  adds  IsToble,  "  it  would  be 
improper  to  omit  what  Mr.  Hewling  Luson  has 
said  of  these  two  young  men.  '  The  two  unfor- 
tunate brothers,  Benjamin  and  William  Hewling, 
were  the  only  males  of  their  name,  and  of  their 
family,  which  was  in  the  highest  esteem  and 
popularity  among  the  staunch  whigs  and  dissent- 
ing Protestants,  at  that  time  so  numerous  and  re- 
spectable in  the  city.  Their  parts  were  excellent, 
and  their  education  was  the  best  that  could  be 
given  them;  their  morals  were  spotless,  their 
piety  exemplary;  their  zeal  against  popery,  the 
ardor  of  their  courage  in  the  field,  and  the  manly 
meekness,  and  devout  resignation  of  their  deport- 


268  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

ment  to  the  last,  nnder  their  sufferings,  concurred 
with  their  youth,  (the  one  twenty-one,  and  the 
other  not  quite  twenty,)  and  the  uncommon  beauty 
and  gracefulness  of  their  persons,  to  place  them  the 
first  in  the  list  which  was  at  that  time  called  The 
Western  Marty rology^  and  to  render  the  severity  of 
th^ir  fate  most  pitied  of  any  who  fell  a  sacrifice  to 
the  popish  vengeance  of  James,  though  there  were 
some  other  sentences  much  more  unjust/  " 

We  cannot  willingly  close  this  account  without 
a  touching  anecdote  of  Mr.  Kifiin,  the  venerable 
grandfather  of  these  excellent  young  men.  Shortly 
before  his  abdication,  James  determined,  after 
having  arbitrarily  deprived  the  city  of  London  of 
its  charters,  to  change  its  magistracy,  and  to  put 
some  of  the  dissenters  into  oflice.  He  privately 
sent  to  Kiflln  to  wait  upon  him  at  court.  When 
he  arrived  there,  he  found  many  lords  and  gentle- 
men. The  king  immediately  came  up,  and  ad- 
dressed him  with  all  the  little  grace  he  was  master 
of.  He  talked  of  his  favor  to  the  dissenters  in  the 
court  style  of  the  time,  and  concluded  with  telling 
the  old  man  that  he  had  put  him  down  in  his  new 
charter  as  an  alderman.  ''  Sire,"  replied  Kiffln, 
"  I  am  a  very  old  man,  and  have  withdrawn  my- 
self from  all  kind  of  business  for  some  years  past; 
and  am  incapable  of  doing  any  service  in  such  an 
affair  to  your  majesty  in  the  city.  Besides,  Sire," 
— the  old  man  went  on,  fixing  his  eyes  steadfastly 
on  the  king,  while  the  tears  ran  down  his  cheeks 
— ^'  the  death  of  my  grandsons  gave  a  wound  to 
my  heart  which  is  still  bleeding,  and  never  will 


BENJAMIN    AND    WILLIAM    HEWLING.  269 

close  but  in  the  grave."  The  king  was  greatly 
struck  by  the  manner,  the  spirit,  and  the  freedom 
of  this  rebuke,  so  unexpected  but  so  just.  An  en- 
tire silence  followed,  while  the  king,  chagrined 
and  mortified,  as  indicated  in  his  countenance, 
showed  that  he  shrunk  from  the  horrid  remem- 
brance. He  soon,  however,  recovered  himself 
enough  to  say,  ''  Mr.  Kiffin,  I  shall  find  a  balsam 
for  that  sore;"  and  then  immediately  turned  about 
to  a  lord  in  waiting.  Of  course  Mr.  Kiffin  never 
again  heard  from  the  king. 


CHAPTER  V. 


CHRISTIAN   WOMEN    MARTYRS   IN   ENGLAND. 


ANNE    ASKEW. 


This  distinguished  lady  is  very  truly  said,  by 
Mr.  C.  B.  Tayler,  to  have  been  the  most  interest- 
ing victim  of  the  fires  of  Smithfield.  "We  have  ia- 
deed  a  sad  story  to  tell  of  this  gentle  and  delicate 
woman.  She  was  the  intimate  friend  and  com- 
panion of  the  lovely  queen  Catherine  Parr,  and 
was  singled  out  by  the  crafty  bishop  Gardiner  and 
others,  as  well  as  by  the  popish  ladies  of  the  court, 
hoping  that  through  her  they  might  find  an  accu- 
sation against  the  queen,  for  holding  the  faith  and 
principles  of  the  Reformation. 

Anne  Askew,  as  we  learn  from  the  second  volume 
of  ''  The  Pictorial  History  of  England^'"  by  Messrs. 
Craik  and  Macfarlane,  was  associated  with  Joan 
Boucher,  of  whom  we  shall  speak  in  our  next  ar- 
ticle, in  the  good  work  of  circulating  books  and 
tracts  in  the  court  of  Henry  VIII.  Joan  escaped 
burning  till  the  following  reign,  but,  like  her 
friend,  Anne  Askew,  she  was  persecuted  and  im- 
prisoned by  the  tyrannical  and  hypocritical  mon- 
arch. The  probability  that  these  two  friends  en- 
tertained the  same  views  on  the  subject  of  baptism, 

(270) 


ANNE    ASKEW.  271 

seems  confirmed  by  uncontradicted  tradition,  and 
the  fact  that  no  other  body  of  Christians  ever 
seems  to  have  claimed  either  the  one  or  the  other. 
We  feel  no  difficulty,  therefore,  in  placing  Anne 
Askew  among  the  so-called  "fanatical  Anabap- 
tists," of  whose  religious  views  the  lower  house  of 
convocation  complained  to  the  sovereign,  "  as 
prevalent  errors  that  demanded  correction." 

Anne  was  the  youngest  daughter  of  Sir  William 
Askew,  of  Kelsey,  in  Lincolnshire ;  her  eldest  sis- 
ter had  been  engaged  to  marry  a  gentleman  of  the 
name  of  Kyme,  a  harsh  and  bigoted  Catholic ;  but 
the  sister  died,  and  she  was  compelled  by  her 
father  to  take  her  sister's  place,  and  become  the 
wife  of  that  gentleman.  It  was  indeed  a  most  un- 
happy marriage  for  Anne.  Her  education  had  been 
supeiior  to  that  usually  given  even  to  the  nobility 
in  those  days,  and  she  possessed  a  strong  and  en- 
lightened mind ;  indeed  she  presented  a  striking 
contrast  to  her  morose  and  narrow-minded  hus- 
band. 

She  seems  to  have  been  distinguished  for  piety 
from  her  earliest  years,  and  to  have  searched  and 
prized  the  holy  Scriptures,  which  had  made  her 
wise  unto  salvation.  Her  love  gf  the  truth,  as  it 
is  found  in  its  purity  and  freshness  in  the  word  of 
inspiration,  gave  grea-t  displeasure  to  her  husband, 
by  whom  she  was  cruelly  driven  from  her  home. 
One  of  the  accusations  against  her  was,  "  that  she 
was  the  devoutest  woman  he  had  ever  known,  for 
she  began  to  pray  always  at  midnight,  and  con- 
tinued for  some  hours  in  that  exercise." 


272  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Travelling  to  London  to  sue  for  a  divorce  from 
her  tyrannical  husband,  his  persecution  and  that 
of  the  popish  priests  followed  her,  and  she  soon 
fell  into  the  snares  they  had  laid  for  her.  Full  of 
piety  and  of  Christian  simplicity,  she  dreamt  of  no 
evil  in  the  circles  in  which  she  moved.  Anne 
Askew — for  she  had  resumed  her  maiden  name — 
was  filled  with  the  piety  induced  by  the  Holy 
Spirit.  Her  thorough  knowledge  of  Holy  Scrip- 
ture, the  hold  which  it  had  obtained  of  her  heart, 
the  influence  which  it  exercised  upon  her  conduct, 
the  sweetness  which  it  breathed  over  her  manners, 
all  combined  to  win  for  her  the  affection  of  those 
noble  and  pious  ladies  who  formed  the  circle  of 
the  queen's  society,  who  was  herself  said  to  be  her 
friend,  to  have  received  books  from  her,  and  to 
have  returned  many  a  kind  message.  It  has  been 
said  that  probably  a  more  unguarded  and  fearless 
spirit  existed  in  this  meek  and  gentle  lady  than  in 
any  other  follower  of  Christ  of  her  sex,  rank,  and 
the  age  in  which  she  lived. 

Soon,  however,  did  she  find  that  all  the  holy 
familiar  intercourse  she  held  on  various  occasions 
with  the  godly  ladies  of  the  court  must  cease  ;  and 
that  her  attachment  to  the  writings  and  memory 
of  holy  men  must  be  locked  up  as  inviolate  secrets 
in  her  own  bosom ;  for  she  was  apprehended  on 
the  charge  of  holding  heretical  opinions  against 
the  six  articles,  with  especial  reference  to  the  sa- 
crament of  the  Lord's  supper,  and  was  committed 
to  prison.  Her  conduct  from  that  time  presented 
a  remarkable  combination  of  lofty  self-possession. 


ANNE    ASKEW.  273 

and  touching  simplicity  and  sweetness — of  firm- 
ness, constancy,  and  a  ready  wit,  according  to  the 
true  acceptation  of  that  word;  and  all  these  quali- 
ties were  in  perfect  keeping  in  her  whole  character 
and  conduct,  and  made  her  at  the  same  time  one 
of  the  most  feminine  and  courageous  of  her  sex. 

On  the  part  of  her  enemies  two  objects  were 
plainly  manifest  in  all  the  examinations  to  which 
they  subjected  her — the  first  was  to  make  her 
criminate  herself,  the  second  to  lead  her  to  crimi- 
nate the  queen,  and  those  of  her  ladies  who  were 
suspected  of  holding  "the  new  learning,"  as  the 
eternal  truths  of  the  gospel  were  called  by  the 
Catholics. 

Few  women  have  so  dearly  and  so  truly  won 
the  title  of  heroine,  in  the  highest  sense  of  the 
word,  as  the  poor  persecuted  martyr,  Anne  Askew. 
Few  have  possessed  a  presence  of  mind  so  unsup- 
ported by  human  strength,  or  even  so  little  en- 
couraged by  human  friends,  as  this  young  lady. 
The  wisdom  and  discretion  which  she  exhibited 
in  answering  the  insidious  questions,  and  baffling 
the  crafty  designs  of  her  enemies,  were  no  less  re- 
markable than  her  clear  and  accurate  knowledge 
of  the  word  of  God,  and  her  resolute  spirit  in  cleav- 
ing to  it.  And  thus  she  met  and  surmounted  all 
the  difficulties  to  which  she  was  exposed,  in  one 
conference  after  another,  with  the  most  skilful  and 
subtle  of  the  Popish  party;  and  every  one  who 
entered  into  an  encounter  with  her,  was  com- 
pletely foiled  by  her  truth,  her  simplicity  of  wis- 
.dom,   her  patience,  and  her  calm  trust  in  God. 


274  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

Her  piteous  story  is  enough  to  melt  the  sternest 
man  to  tears,  were  it  not  that  the  heart  must 
throb,  and  the  cheek  burn  at  the  disgraceful  con- 
sciousness that  Englishmen  and  English  prelates, 
could  be  found  base  and  bad  enough  to  make 
that  gentle  lady  the  victim  of  their  diabolical 
malice. 

She  was  examined  concerning  her  opinions  by 
Christopher  Dare,  and  Sir  Martin  Bowes,  the  then 
Lord  Mayor  of  London,  and  their  brother  com- 
missioners. With  what  inimitable  simplicity  did 
she  reply  in  the  conversation,  which  is  said  to 
have  taken  place  between  the  Lord  Mayor  and 
herself:  ''  What  if  a  mouse  were  to  eat  the  sacred 
bread  after  it  was  consecrated?"  was  the  absurd 
question ;  "  what  shall  become  of  the  mouse,  what 
sayest  thou,  thou  foolish  woman  ?"  "  Kay,  what 
Bay  you,  my  lord,  will  become  of  it?"  ^'I  say 
that  mouse  is  damned!"  "Alas,  poor  mouse," 
was  her  quiet  reply ;  and  so  at  once  all  his  divinity 
was  discomfited.  In  one  of  her  examinations 
she  was  asked  if  she  had  said  that  priests  could 
not  make  the  body  of  Christ;  "I  have  read"  she 
replied,  "that  God  made  man;  but  that  man  can 
make  God,  I  never  yet  read,  nor,  I  suppose  ever 
shall." 

She  herself,  in  the  most  artless  language,  gives 
an  account  of  her  various  examinations.  First, 
she  was  summoned  before  the  inquisition  at  Sad- 
ler's Hall,  where  Christopher  Dare  asked  her  if 
she  did  not  believe  that  the  sacrament  hanging 
over  the  altar  was  the  very  l)]ood  of  Christ.     She 


ANNE    ASKEW.  275 

replied  by  asking  "him,  Why  Stephen  was  stoned  ? 
to  death  ?  He  said  he  could  not  tell.  ''  N"o  more/' 
said  she,  "  will  I  answer  your  vain  question." 
Being  charged  with  reading  from  a  book  that  God 
dwelleth  not  in  temples  made  with  hands,  she 
showed  them  the  seventh  and  seventeenth  chap- 
ters of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles.  She  was  asked 
why  she  had  said  she  would  rather  read  five  lines 
in  the  Bible  than  hear  five  masses  ?  She  confessed 
having  said  it,  because  the  one  did  greatly  edify 
her,  and  the  other  did  not  at  all ;  quoting  the  text 
in  the  fourteenth  of  the  first  epistle  to  the  Corin- 
thians : — "  If  the  trumpet  give  an  uncertain  sound, 
who  shall  prepare  himself  for  the  battle  ?" 

On  her  next  examination  before  the  lord  mayor, 
she  relates  : — "  Then  the  bishop's  chancellor  re- 
buked me,  and  said  I  was  much  to  blame  for 
uttering  the  Scriptures ;  for  St.  Paul,  he  said,  for- 
bade women  to  speak,  or  to  talk  of  the  word  of 
God.  I  answered  him  that  I  knew  Paul's  mean- 
ing as  well  as  he,  which  is  that  a  woman  ought 
not  to  speak  in  the  congregation,  by  the  way  of 
teaching.  And  then  I  asked  him  how  many  wo- 
men he  had  seen  go  into  the  pulpit  and  preach  ? 
He  said  he  never  saw  any.  Then  I  said  he  ought 
to  find  no  fault  in  poor  women,  except  they  offend 
against  the  law."  In  an  interview  with  a  priest 
she  requested  him  to  answer  some  of  his  own 
questions,  when  he  told  her  "  that  it  was  against 
the  order  of  the  schools,  that  he  who  asked  the 
question,  should  be  required  to  answer  it;"  she  at 


276  BAPTIST   MARTYES. 

once  told  him  that  she  was  but  a  woman,  and 
knew  not  the  course  of  schools. 

But  we  pass  over  these,  and  many  other  exami- 
nations, in  which  the  patience  of  her  adversaries, 
who  could  not  overcome  her,  was  exhausted. 
These  bold  and  crafty  men  were  determined  to 
spare  neither  threat  nor  violence  by  which  they 
might  extort  from  her  some  word  or  other,  as  a 
ground  of  accusation  against  the  Lady  Herbert, 
who  was  the  queen's  sister,  or  the  Duchess  of  Suf- 
folk, and  so  at  last  Queen  Catharine  herself.  As 
yet  they  had  discovered  nothing.  Rich,  and  another 
of  the  council,  came  to  her  in  the  tower,  where  she 
was  then  confined,  and  demanded  that  she  should 
make  the  disclosures  which  they  required  concern- 
ing her  party,  and  her  friends.  She  told  them 
nothing.  "  Then,"  she  says,  "  they  did  put  me 
on  the  rack,  because  I  confessed  no  ladies  or  gen- 
tlemen to  be  of  my  opinion ;  and  thereon  they 
kept  me  a  long  time,  and  because  I  lay  still  and 
did  not  cry,  my  lord  chancellor  and  Mr.  Rich  took 
pains  to  rack  me  with  their  own  hands  till  I  was 
nigh  dead."  These  inhuman  creatures,  it  is  re- 
corded, provoked  by  her  saintJike  endurance, 
ordered  the  lieutenant  of  the  tower  to  rack  her 
again.  He,  Sir  Anthony  Knevett,  "tendering  the 
weakness  of  the  woman,"  positively  refused  to  do 
so.  Then  Wriothesley  and  Rich  threw  ofl*  their 
gowns,  and  threatening  the  lieutenant  that  they 
would  complain  of  his  disobedience  to  the  king, 
"  they  worked  the  rack  themselves,  till  her  bones 
and  joints  were  almost  plucked  asunder."     When 


5 

a* 


> 

o 
a 

5' 


ANNE    ASKEW.  277 

the  lieutenant  caused  her  to  be  loosed  down  from 
the  rack,  she  immediately  swooned.  ^' Then," 
she  writes,  "they  recovered  me  again.  After  that 
I  sate  two  long  hours  reasoning  with  my  lord 
chancellor  on  the  bare  floor,  where  he,  with  many 
flattering  words,  persuaded  me  to  leave  my  opin- 
ion ;  but  my  Lord  God,  I  thank  his  everlasting 
goodness,  gave  me  grace  to  persevere,  and  will  do, 
I  hope,  to  the  very  end."  And  she  concludes 
this  account  to  her  friend,  by  saying,  "Farewell, 
dear  friend,  and  pray,  pray,  pray." 

The  lieutenant  of  the  tower,  fearing  Wriothes- 
ley's  threats,  secretly  took  a  boat,  and  hastened  to 
the  king,  to  tell  him  the  things  he  had  witnessed. 
Henry  seemed  displeased  at  the  excess  of  barbarity 
perpetrated,  and  dismissed  the  humane  officer  with 
assurances  of  his  pardon ;  telling  him  to  return, 
and  see  to  his  charge  in  the  tower.  There  all  the 
wardens  and  officials  anxiously  waited  the  result ; 
and  gave  God  thanks  for  the  success  of  his  em- 
bassy. 

Lascelles,  one  of  Anne's  fellow  martyrs,  inquir- 
ing if  it  were  true  that  she  had  recanted,  received 
from  her  this  reply : — "  0  friend,  most  dearly  be- 
loved in  God,  I  marvel  not  a  little  what  should 
move  you  to  judge  in  me  so  slender  a  faith  as  to 
fear  death,  which  is  the  end  of  all  miseries.  In 
the  Lord  I  desire  you  not  to  believe  of  me  such 
weakness.  For  I  doubt  it  not  but  God  will  per- 
form his  works  in  me,  like  as  he  hath  begun. 
I  understand  the  council  is  not  a  little  displeased, 
that  it  should  be  reported  abroad  that  I  was  racked 
24 


278  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

in  tlie  tower.  They  say  now,  that  what  they  did 
there  was  but  to  fear  me;  [make  me  afraid,] 
whereby  I  perceive  they  are  ashamed  of  their  un- 
comely doings,  and  fear  much  lest  the  king's  ma- 
jesty should  have  information  thereof;  wherefore 
they  would  have  no  man  to  noise  it.  "Well,  for 
their  cruelty  God  forgive  them !" 

Her  last  hours  were  employed  in  writing  a 
strong  denial  of  a  report  which  had  been  circu- 
lated, that  she  had  recanted,  and  swerved  from  the 
truth,  and  she  concludes  her  account  with  this 
beautiful  prayer : — ''  0  Lord,  I  have  more  enemies 
now,  tlian  there  be  hairs  on  my  head  !  Yet,  Lord, 
let  them  never  overcome  me  with  vain  words,  but 
fight  thou,  Lord,  in  my  stead :  for  on  Thee  cast  I 
my  care !  With  all  the  spite  they  can  imagine, 
they  fall  upon  me,  who  am  Thy  poor  creature. 
Yet,  sweet  Lord,  let  me  not  set  by  them  that  are 
against  me ;  for  in  Thee  is  my  whole  delight. 
And,  Lord,  I  heartily  desire  of  Thee,  that  Thou 
wilt,  of  Thy  most  merciful  goodness,  forgive  them 
that  violence  which  they  do,  and  have  done  unto 
me ;  open  also  Thou  their  blind  hearts,  that  they 
may  hereafter  do  that  thing  in  Thy  sight,  which 
is  only  acceptable  before  Thee,  and  to  set  forth 
Thy  verity  aright,  without  all  vain  fantasies  of 
sinful  men.     So  be  it,  O  Lord,  so  be  it." 

Unable  to  walk  or  stand  from  the  tortures  she 
had  endured,  Anne  Askew  was  carried  in  a  chair 
to  Smithfield,  and  when  brought  to  the  stake  was 
fastened  to  it  by  a  chain  which  held  up  her  body, 
and  one  who  saw  her  there  describes  her  as  "  hav- 


ANNE   ASKEW.  279 

mg  an  angel's  countenance,  and  a  smiling  face." 
She  had  three  companions  in  her  last  agonies,  fel- 
low-martyrs with  herself,  John  Lascelles,  a  gentle- 
man of  the  court  and  household  of  king  Henry, 
John  Adams,  a  tailor,  and  Nicholas  Belenian,  a 
minister  of  Shropshire.  The  apostate  priest  Shax- 
ton  preached  the  sermon,  to  which  Anne  Askew 
gave  diligent  attention,  assenting  w^hen  he  spoke 
truth,  and  when  he  erred,  detecting  and  exposing 
it.  The  concourse  of  spectators  was  so  great,  that 
a  space  was  obliged  to  be  railed  in  to  keep  off*  the 
pressure.  The  three  Throckmortons,  near  kins- 
men of  the  queen,  and  members  of  her  household, 
drew  near  to  comfort  Anne  and  her  three  com- 
panions, but  were  warned  that  they  were  marked 
men,  and  were  entreated  to  withdraw. 

While  these  things  were  going  on,  at  a  short 
distance,  elevated  on  a  high  judicial  seat,  im- 
mediately under  St.  Bartholomew's  church,  sat 
Wriothesley,  the  tormenting  Lord  Chancellor  of 
England,  the  old  duke  of  JJ'orfolk,  the  old  earl  of 
Bedford,  the  Lord  Mayor,  and  several  others. 
Guilt  always  makes  men  fearful,  and  when  these 
men  heard  that  some  gunpowder  w^as  thrown  upon 
the  bodies  of  the  martyrs,  they  showed  no  small 
alarm,  lest  the  faggots  might  thereby  be  driven 
towards  them.  At  length,  however,  the  facts  be- 
ing fully  ascertained  by  the  earl  of  Bedford,  their 
alarm  ceased. 

At  the  very  last,  a  written  pardon  from  the  king 
was  offered  to  Anne  Askew,  upon  condition  that 
she  would  recant.     The  fearless  lady  turned  away 


280  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

her  eyes  and  would  not  look  npon  it.  Slie  told 
them  that  she  came  not  there  to  deny  her  Lord 
and  Master.  The  fire  was  ordered  to  be  put  under 
her,  and  her  companions,  who,  in  like  manner 
had  each  refused  a  pardon,  by  the  Lord  Mayor ; 
"and  thus,"  to  use  the  words  of  John  Foxe,  "  the 
good  Anne  Askew,  with  these  blessed  martyrs,  hav- 
ing passed  through  so  many  torments,  having  now 
ended  the  long  course  of  her  agonies,  being  en- 
compassed with  flames  of  fire  as  a  blessed  sacrifice 
unto  God,  she  slept  in  the  Lord,  A.  D.  1546,  leav- 
ing behind  her  a  singular  example  of  Christian 
constancy  for  all  men  to  follow."  Her  crime  was 
the  denial  of  the  Mass,  "So  this,"  she  wrote,  "is 
the  heresy  that  I  hold,  and  for  it  must  suffer  death." 
She  kept  the  faith  to  her  God,  she  kept  the  faith 
to  her  friends,  for  she  betrayed  no  one,  enduring 
shame  and  agony  with  meek  unshaken  constancy. 
0  none  but  Christ,  none  but  Christ  could  have 
made  the  weakness  of  a  delicate  woman  so  strong, — 
the  feebleness  of  a  mortal  creature  so  triumphant ! 
And  thus  the  square  of  Smithfield,  which  was 
made  in  the  reign  of  Henry  L,  "a  lay  stall  of  all 
ordure  or  filth,"  and  the  place  of  execution  for 
felons  and  other  transgressors,  has  become  not  only 
drenched  with  the  blood  of  martyrs,  but  hallowed 
by  the  faith  and  patience  of  the  saints,  by  the  wit- 
ness of  their  good  confessions,  and  by  the  breath 
of  their  dying  prayers  and  praises. 


JOAN   BOUCHER. 


Joan  Boucher,  or  as  slie  is  more  frequently 
called,  Joan  of  Kent^  of  high  parentage,  and  en- 
gaged in  the  court  of  Henry  VIII.,  was  unques- 
tionably a  Baptist.  Uninterrupted  and  uncontra- 
dicted tradition  reports  her  as  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  church,  then  meeting  at  Canterbury  and 
Eythorne,  and  which  still  flourishes  in  the  latter 
village,  near  the  south-eastern  extremity  of  Eng- 
land, a  few  miles  from  Dover,  and  about  sixteen 
miles  from  Canterbury,  where  not  a  few  of  her 
friends  endured  the  fire  of  martyrdom. 

Strange  as  it  may  appear  to  some  of  our  readers, 
in  1547  was  established  a  Protestant  inquisition, 
of  which  Cranmer  and  Latimer,  who  were  them- 
selves in  after  years  martyrs,  and  other  men  of 
great  eminence,  were  commissioners.  Only  eighteen 
days  after  the  commission  was  issued,  Joan  Boucher 
was  arraigned  for  heresy  before  this  body,  and  her 
sentence  formally  pronounced.  From  Cranmer's 
own  archiepis  copal  register  we  learn  that  he  him- 
self sat  as  principal  judge  on  this  sad  occasion,  as- 
sisted by  Latimer  and  three  others,  as  the  king's 
'^proctors,  inquisitors,  judges,  and  commissaries.'* 

Joan  Boucher  had  been  an  active  distributor  of 

the  proscribed  translation  of  the  ]!^ew  Testament 

by  Tyndale.     The  court  of  Henry  was  the  scene 

of  her  zealous  labors,  where  she  often  introduced 

24*  (281) 


282  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

the  sacred  volumes  unsuspected,  tying,  as  Strype 
tells  us,  the  precious  books  by  strings  to  her  ap- 
parel. Although  well  acquainted  with  the  Scrip- 
tures, she  could  not  read  them ;  no  uncommon 
calamity  in  that  day,  even  among  people  of  rank. 
Much  of  her  time,  Foxe  tells  us,  was  occupied  in 
visiting  the  prisons,  wherein  were  incarcerated  her 
companions  in  tribulation,  whom  it  was  her  custom 
perpetually  and  bountifully  to  assist. 

But  there  was  one  supposed  error  which  was 
sufficient  to  expose  her  to  the  poisonous  breath  of 
calumny,  and  to  the  burning  flame.  For  this  she 
had  to  appear  before  the  inquisitors,  "  in  the  chapel 
of  the  blessed  Mary  in  St.  Paul's."  The  examina- 
tions were  long,  the  judges  learned,  and  apparently 
desirous  to  save  her  from  the  stake ;  but  she  could 
not,  she  would  not  be  convinced  that  she  held  any 
heresy,  or  anything  in  opposition  to  the  truth. 
I^either  threatenings  nor  entreaties  moved  her; 
but  a  good  conscience  made  her  bold.  At  length 
she  uttered  language  which  it  grieved  her  judges 
to  hear,  but  which  smote  their  consciences  with 
its  telling  truth.  "It  is,"  said  she,  "a  goodly 
matter  to  consider  your  ignorance.  It  is  not  long 
ago  since  you  burned  Anne  Askew  for  a  piece  of 
bread,  and  yet  you  came  yourselves  soon  after  to 
believe  and  profess  the  same  doctrine  for  which 
you  burned  her.  And  now,  forsooth,  you  will 
burn  me  for  a  piece  of  flesh,  and  in  the  end  you 
will  come  to  believe  this  also,  when  you  have  read 
the  Scriptures,  and  understood  them." 

With,  professedly,  "  the  fear  of  God  before  his 


JOAN   BOTICIIER.  283 

eyes,"  and  with  invocation  of  the  name  of  Christ, 
the  '^  reverend  father  in  Christ,  Thomas,  arch- 
bishop of  Canterbury,"  with  the  full  approbation 
of  his  colleagueSy  proceeded  to  pronounce  her 
doom.  The  sentence  contained  her  crime  and  its 
punishment.  "You  believe  that  the  Word  was 
made  flesh  in  the  virgin,  but  that  Christ  took  flesh 
of  the  virgin  you  believe  not ;  because  the  flesh  of 
the  virgin  being  the  outward  man  sinfully  gotten, 
and  born  in  sin,  but  the  Word  by  the  consent  of 
the  inward  man  of  the  virgin  was  made  flesh. 
This  dogma,  with  obstinate,  obdurate,  and  perr 
tinacious  mind,  you  affirm,  and  not  without  much 
haughtiness  of  mien.  With  wonderful  blindness 
of  heart,  to  this  you  hold;  therefore,  for  your 
demerits,  obstinacy,  and  contumacy,  aggravated 
by  a  wicked  and  damnable  pertinacity,  being  also 
unwilling  to  return  to  the  faith  of  the  church, 
you  are  adjudged  a  heretic,  to  be  handed  to 
the  secular  power,  to  sufier  in  due  course  of  law, 
and  finally  the  ban  of  the  great  excommunication 
is  upon  you."  The  inquisitors  completed  the 
labors  of  the  day,  by  announcing  to  Edward,  the 
youthful  sovereign,  through  their  president,  that 
they  had  decreed  her  separation  from  the  Lord's 
flock  as  a  diseased  sheep.  "  And  since,"  said  they, 
"  our  holy  mother,  the  church,  hath  nought  else 
that  she  can  do  on  this  behalf,  we  leave  the  said 
heretic  to  your  royal  highness,  and  to  the  secular 
arm,  to  sufter  her  deserved  punishment." 

Considerable   delay,   however,   occurred   before 
the  execution  of  the  sentence.     We  may  give  the 


284  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

reformers  credit  for  an  earnest  desire  to  lead  Joan 
Boucher  to  more  correct  views,  but  must  not 
withhold  an  expression  of  just  abhorrence  at  the 
bloody  deed,  and  at  the  hateful  principle  on  which 
they  acted.  They  had  adopted  an  unsound  basis 
for  their  reformation,  and  its  necessary  result  was 
oppression  of  conscience.  The  exercise  of  freedom 
of  thought  and  judgment  upon  Scripture  truth  was 
impossible.  Eidley,  of  London,  and  Goodrich,  of 
Ely,  were  specially  active  in  their  endeavors  to 
reclaim  her ;  to  whom  must  be  added,  Cranmer, 
Latimer,  Lever,  Whitehead,  and  Hutchinson. 

A  year  within  three  days  was  passed  in  these 
unavailing  efforts.  Her  constancy  remained  un- 
shaken. On  the  27th  of  April,  the  council  issued 
their  warrant  to  the  lord  chancellor  to  make  out  a 
writ  for  her  execution;  and  Cranmer  is  said,  by 
Foxe,  to  have  been  most  urgent  with  the  young 
king  to  affix  the  sign  manual  to  the  cruel  docu- 
ment. The  youthful  king  hesitated.  Cranmer 
argued  from  the  law  of  Moses,  by  which  blas- 
phemers were  to  be  stoned  to  death  ;  this  woman, 
he  said,  was  guilty  of  impiety  in  the  sight  of  Cod, 
which  a  prince,  as  God's  deputy,  ought  to  punish. 
The  youthful  king  said  to  Cranmer,  "Mj  lord, 
will  you  send  her  soul  to  hell?"  But  his  majesty 
was  compelled  to  yield,  and  saying  ''  If  it  be  an 
error,  you,  my  lord,  shall  answer  it  to  God." 
With  tears,  the  royal  signature  was  appended. 
Rogers,  the  first  martyr  of  Mary's  reign,  also 
thought  that  she  ought  to  be  put  to  death,  and 
when  urged  with  the  cruelty  of  the  deed,  replied, 


JOAN    BOUCHER.  ^  285 

^'  that  burning  alive  was  no  cruel  death,  but  easy 
enough."  He  was  the  first  man  called  in  the  reign 
of  Mary  to  test  the  truth  of  his  own  remark. 

The  bishops  had  resolved  that  Joan  Boucher 
should  die,  and  on  the  2d  of  May,  1550,  she  ap- 
peared at  the  stake  in  Smithfield.  Here  further 
efforts  were  made  to  shake  her  confidence.  To 
Bishop  Scory  was  allotted  the  duty  of  preaching 
to  the  sufferer,  and  to  the  people  on  the  occasion. 
''He  tried,"  says  Strype,  "to  convert  her;  she 
scoffed,  and  said  he  lied  like  a  rogue,  and  bade 
him,  '  Go  read  the  Scriptures.'  "  By  this  language 
we  understand  an  indignant  rejection  of  the  shame- 
ful misrepresentations  which  in  that  hour  of  trial 
were  made  of  her  faith.  She  closely  adhered  to 
those  words  of  truth  which  were  her  joy  and 
strength,  in  the  moments  of  her  dying  agony. 
She  loved  and  adored  the  holy  and  immaculate 
Lamb  of  God. 

"Were  it  desirable,  it  might  easily  be  shown 
that  Joan  Boucher  did  not  believe  or  teach  the 
errors  laid  to  her  charge.  She  differed  from  the 
Catholics  chiefly  in  believing  that  the  mother  of 
Jesus,  like  all  other  merely  human  beings,  was 
tainted  with  sin. 


MRS.    PREST. 


Few  things  are  more  difficult  in  reading  "  John 
Foxe's  Martyrology''  than  to  distinguish  between 
Baptists  and  others.  Nothing  was  more  common 
than  to  brand  an  appeal  to  the  Scriptures  as  the 
only  infallible  standard  of  truth,  or  an  assertion  of 
the  full  rights  of  conscience,  and  other  things  of  a 
similar  character,  as  ''  anahaptistical  errors^''  without 
any  regard  to  their  views  and  conduct  as  to  the 
ordinance  of  baptism.  And  again,  John  Foxe 
partook  fully  of  the  prejudices  of  the  good  men  of 
his  day  against  the  Baptists,  and  whenever  he 
could,  throughout  his  work,  he  defended  martyrs 
fi-om  the  supposed  crime.  As  he  has  not  vindi- 
cated the  good  woman  of  whom  we  now  speak 
from  the  charge,  but  tells  us  that  in  several  ex- 
aminations she  was  called  "  an  Anabaptist^''  there 
can  be  no  doubt  that  we  may  place  her  on  our 
list. 

This  poor  woman  resided  near  Launceston,  in 
Cornwall.  ''She  was,"  says  Foxe,  "as  simple  a 
woman  to  see  to  as  any  man  might  behold ;  of  a 
very  little  and  short  stature  ;  somewhat  thick ;  and 
almost  fifty  years  of  age.  She  had  a  cheerful  and 
lively  countenance;  most  patient  in.  her  words 
and  answers ;  sober  in  apparel,  meat,  and  drink ; 
and  would  never  be  idle  ;  a  great  comfort  to  those 
who  conversed  with  her ;  good  to  the  poor ;  and 

(286) 


MRS.    PREST.  287 

even  when  in  her  troubles  would  never  accept 
money  from  any  one  ;  '  for,'  she  would  say,  'I  am 
going  to  a  city  where  money  bears  no  mastery ; 
and  while  I  am  here  God  has  promised  to  feed 
me.'  "  By  a  diligent  attention  to  the  sermons  of 
pious  ministers,  probably  in  the  days  of  king  Ed- 
ward, and  hearing  good  books  read,  (for  she  her- 
self could  not  read,)  she  had  gained  such  an  ac- 
quaintance with  the  Scriptures,  that  she  could 
readily  tell  where  any  passage  alluded  to  might  be 
found ;  and  very  powerfully  felt  the  truth  on  her 
heart. 

Her  husband  and  children  were  strongly  at- 
tached to  the  superstitions  of  popery;  and  fre- 
quently compelled  her  to  attend  mass,  visit  the 
confessional,  and  assist  in  processions.  For  some 
time  she  submitted  to  these  impositions ;  but  as 
her  convictions  of  their  sinfulness  increased,  the 
burden  of  an  accusing  conscience  became  intoler- 
able. She  prayed  earnestly  for  divine  direction 
and  support;  and  at  length  resolved  to  sacrifice 
all  her  earthly  comforts  rather  than  submit  to 
practices  which  she  was  now  convinced  were  anti- 
christian  and  idolatrous.  She  communicated  her 
determination  to  her  family ;  "  and  grew,"  as 
Foxe  expresses  it,  "  in  contempt  with  her  husband 
and  children."  She  then  thought  it  to  be  her 
duty,  in  order  to  keep  a  clear  conscience,  to  sepa- 
rate herself  from  her  family,  and  commit  herself 
to  the  care  of  Providence.  Accordingly  she  left 
her  home  ;  and  moving  about  from  place  to  place, 
obtained  a  livelihood  by  spinning.     She  omitted 


288  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

no  opportunity  of  declaring  her  sentiments  on  re- 
ligious subjects,  especially  on  the  popish  doctrine 
of  transubstantiation. 

After  some  time,  she  was  brought  again  to  her 
husband;  but  whether  by  persuasion  or  force  does 
not  appear.  She  had  not,  however,  been  long  at 
home,  before  her  neighbors,  having  sent  informa- 
tion to  the  bishop  of  Exeter,  had  her  conveyed  be- 
fore him  for  examination.  On  this  occasion,  the 
following  conversation  took  place,  the  particulars 
of  which  were  communicated  to  the  historian  by 
those  who  heard  it. 

Bishop. — Thou  foolish  woman,  I  hear  say  that 
thou  hast  spoken  certain  words  against  the  most 
blessed  sacrament  of  the  altar,  the  body  of  Christ. 
Fie,  for  shame !  Thou  art  an  unlearned  person, 
and  a  woman.  Wilt  thou  meddle  with  such  high 
matters,  which  all  the  doctors  cannot  define? 
Wilt  thou  talk  of  so  high  mysteries  ?  Keep  to 
thy  work  and  meddle  with  thy  own  concerns.  It 
is  no  woman-matter,  to  be  prated  about  while  card- 
ing and  spinning.  If  it  be  as  I  am  informed,  thou 
art  worthy  to  be  burned. 

Mrs.  Prest. — My  lord,  I  trust  your  lordship 
will  hear  me  speak. 

Bishop. — =Yea,  marry :  therefore  I  sent  for 
thee. 

Mrs.  Prest. — I  am  a  poor  woman  and  live  by 
my  hands ;  getting  a  penny  honestly ;  and  of  that 
I  get,  I  give  part  to  the  poor. 

Bishop. — That  is  well  done.  Art  thou  not  a 
man's  wife  ? 


MRS.    PREST.  289 

Mrs.  Prest. — I  have  a  husband  and  children, 
and  yet  I  have  them  not.  So  long  as  I  was  at 
liberty,  I  refused  neither  husband  nor  children. 
But  now,  standing  as  I  do,  in  the  cause  of  Christ 
and  his  truth ;  where  I  must  either  forsake  Christ 
or  my  husband,  I  am  content  to  cleave  only  to 
Christ,  my  heavenly  spouse,  and  renounce  the 
other.  For  my  Saviour  has  said,  "  He  that  leav- 
eth  not  father  or  mother,  brother  or  sister,  or  hus- 
band, or  wife,  for  my  sake,  cannot  be  my  dis- 
ciple." 

Bishop. — Christ  spake  that  of  the  holy  martyrs, 
who  died  because  they  would  not  sacrifice  to  false 
gods. 

Mrs.  Prest. — Surely,  sir ;  and  I  will  rather  die 
than  I  will  worship  that  foul  idol,  which,  with  your 
mass,  you  make  a  god. 

Bishop. — ^Dare  you  say  that  the  sacrament  of  the 
altar  is  a  foul  idol  ? 

Mrs.  Prest. — ^Yea,  truly :  there  never  was  such 
an  idol  as  your  sacrament  is  made  by  your  priests ; 
and  commanded  to  be  worshiped  of  all  men, 
with  many  fantastic  fooleries:  when  Christ  did 
command  it  to  be  eaten  and  drank  in  remem 
brance  of  his  most  blessed  death  for  our  redemp- 
tion. 

Bishop. — Alas !  poor  woman,  thou  art  deceived. 

Mrs.  Prest. — If  you  will  give  me  leave,  I  will 
declare  a  reason  why  I  will  not  worship  the  sacra- 
ment. 

Bishop.— Marry,  say  on.  I  am  sure  it  will  be 
goodly  gear. 

25 


290  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

Mrs.  Prest. — Truly  such  gear  as  I  will  lose  this 
poor  life  of  mine  for. 

Bishop. — Then  you  will  die  a  martyr,  good- 
wife? 

Mrs.  Prest. — Indeed :  if  denying  to  worship 
that  hready  god  be  my  martyrdom,  I  will  suffer  it 
with  all  my  heart. 

Bishop. — Say  thy  mind. 

Mrs.  Prest. — I  will  demand  of  you,  whether 
you  can  deny  your  own  creed,  which  says  that 
Christ  perpetually  sits  at  the  right  hand  of  his 
Father,  both  body  and  soul,  till  he  come  again  ? 
or  whether  he  be  there  as  our  Advocate,  and  in- 
tercedes for  us  with  God  his  Father  ?  If  it  be  so, 
he  is  not  here  on  earth  in  a  piece  of  bread.  If  he 
be  not  here ;  and  if  he  do  not  dwell  in  temples 
made  with  hands,  why  do  we  seek  him  here  ?  K 
he  did  offer  his  body  once  for  all,  why  make  you 
a  new  offering  ?  If,  with  one  offering,  he  made 
all  perfect,  why  do  you,  with  a  false  offering,  make 
all  imperfect  ?  If  he  be  to  be  worshipped  in  spirit 
and  truth,  why  do  you  worship  a  piece  of  bread  ? 
If  he  be  eaten  and  drank  in  faith  and  truth,  and  if 
his  flesh  be  not  profitable  to  be  among  us,  why  do 
you  say  that  you  seek  his  body  and  flesh,  and  that 
it  is  profitable  for  the  body  and  soul  ?  Alas  !  I  am 
a  poor  woman  !  but  rather  than  I  would  do  as  you 
do,  I  would  live  no  longer.     I  have  said,  sir. 

Bishop. — I  promise  you  you  are  a  jolly  Pro- 
testant. I  pray  you,  in  what  schools  have  you 
been  brought  up  ? 

Mrs.  Prest. — I  have,  upon  the  Sundays,  visited 


MRS.    PREST.  291 

the  sermons,  and  there  have  I  learned  such  things 
as  are  so  fixed  in  my  breast,  that  death  shall  not 
separate  them. 

Bishop. — 0,  foolish  woman  !  Who  would  waste 
his  breath  on  thee,  or  such  a  woman  as  thou  art  ? 
But  how  chances  it  that  thou  wentest  away  from 
thy  husband?  If  thou  wert  an  honest  woman, 
thou  wouldst  not  have  left  thy  husband  and  chil- 
dren, and  run  about  the  country  like  a  fugitive. 

Mrs.  Prest. — Sir,  I  labored  for  my  living  ;  and 
as  my  Master,  Christ,  counsels  me,  when  I  was 
persecuted  in  one  city,  I  fled  to  another. 

Bishop. — ^Who  persecuted  thee  ? 

Mrs.  Prest. — My  husband  and  my  children. 
For  when  I  would  have  them  leave  idolatry  and 
worship  God  in  heaven,  they  would  not  hear  ;  but 
rebuked  and  ill-treated  me.  I  fled  not  for  whore- 
dom or  theft ;  but  because  I  would  not  be  a  par- 
taker with  him  and  his  children  of  that  foul  idol 
the  mass.  And  wheresoever  I  was,  as  oft  as  I  could 
upon  Sundays  and  holidays,  I  made  excuses  not 
to  go  to  the  popish  church,  but  to  the  true  church. 

Bishop. — The  true  church!  what  dost  thou 
mean? 

Mrs.  Prest. — ^ISTot  your  popish  church,  full  of 
idols  and  abominations ;  but  where  two  or  three 
are  gathered  together  in  the  name  of  God ;  to  that 
church  will  I  go  as  long  as  I  live. 

Bishop. — ^Belike  then  you  have  a  church  of  your 
own.  "Well ;  let  this  mad  woman  be  put  down  to 
prison,  until  we  send  for  her  husband. 

Mrs.  I^rest. — No.     I  have  but  one  husband, 


292  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

who  is  here  abeady,  in  this  city  and  prison ;  from 
whom  I  will  never  depart. 

The  conclusive  and  rational  answers  of  this 
simple  woman  perplexed  the  bishop  and  his  of- 
ficers ;  who  seemed  at  first  unwilling  to  proceed 
to  extremities.  They  pretended  to  consider  her 
as  out  of  her  senses ;  though  certainly  no  marks 
of  insanity  can  be  discovered  in  her  examinations. 
They  therefore  directed  the  jailer  to  permit  her  to 
go  about  the  town  as  she  pleased ;  in  hope,  pro- 
bably, that  she  would  either  abscond,  or  commit 
some  act  of  extravagance,  which  might  sanction 
harsher  measures.  But  they  were  disappointed. 
She  employed  her  time  diligently  in  the  prison,  in 
doing  the  work  of  a  servant,  and  in  spinning ;  but 
continued  to  bear  her  constant  testimony  against 
the  Catholics;  especially  against  their  favorite 
doctrine  of  the  mass. 

Shortly  after,  they  sent  for  her  husband,  who 
oftered  to  take  her  home,  if  she  would  renounce 
her  heretical  opinions;  but  this  she  steadily  re- 
fused to  do,  declaring  that  she  could  not  betray 
the  cause  of  her  Saviour,  for  which  she  now  stood 
before  the  bishop  and  his  priests.  Several  of  the 
Romish  clergy  undertook  to  persuade  her  to  ac- 
knowledge the  real  presence  of  the  body  of  Christ 
in  the  sacrament ;  but  to  all  their  arguments  she 
replied,  ^'  It  is  nothing  but  very  bread  and  wine ; 
and  you  ought  to  be  ashamed  to  say,  that  a  pieoe 
of  bread,  which  ferments  and  moulds,  and  which 
may  be  eaten  by  mice,  or  burnt  in  the  fire,  is 
changed  by  man  into  the  natural  body  of  Christ. 


MRS.    PREST.  293 

God's  own  body  will  not  be  so  handled,  nor  kept 
in  prison  in  boxes  and  cups.  Let  it  be  your  god ; 
it  shall  not  be  mine.  My  Saviour  sits  at  the  right 
hand  of  God,  and  doth  pray  for  me."  They  told 
her  that  the  devil  had  deceived  her;  "l^o,"  said 
she,  "  I  trust  that  the  living  God  hath  opened  my 
eyes,  and  caused  me  to  understand  the  right  use 
of  the  blessed  sacrament,  which  the  true  church 
doth  use,  but  the  false  church  doth  abuse." 

At  this  point  of  the  discussion,  an  old  friar 
stepped  forward  and  asked  her,  "  What  do  you 
say  of  the  holy  pope?"  Her  reply  was,  "I  say, 
that  he  is  Antichrist  and  the  devil."  At  this 
answer  they  all  very  heartily  laughed.  "  N^ay," 
continued  she,  ''you  have  more  need  to  weep 
than  to  laugh ;  and  to  be  sorry  that  ever  you  were 
born  to  become  the  chaplains  of  that  harlot  of 
Babylon.  I  defy  him  and  all  his  falsehoods.  Get 
you  away  from  me,  you  only  trouble  my  con- 
science. You  would  have  me  follow  your  doings ; 
I  will  first  lose  my  life.  I  pray  you  begone." 
After  much  more  fruitless  conversation,  finding 
her  inflexible,  the  priests  left  her. 

In  one  of  her  walks,  which,  as  we  have  already 
said,  she  was  allowed  to  take  about  the  town,  she 
entered  a  church,  and  seeing  a  Dutch  sculptor, 
busily  engaged  in  fitting  some  new  noses  upon 
some  of  the  graven  images  which  had  been  dis- 
figured in  king  Edward's  days,  she  told  him  that 
he  was  madly  engaged.  In  a  high  rage  he  called 
her  a  harlot,  "Nay,"  retorted  she,  "thy  images 
^re  harlots,  and  thou  art  their  follower;  fordoes 


294  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

not  God  saj,  'Ye  go  a  whoring  after  strange 
gods?'  This  conversation  was  immediately  re- 
ported to  the  bishop,  who  instantly  sent  for  her, 
and  committed  her  to  close  confinement. 

Daring  her  imprisoment,  she  was  visited  by  a 
number  of  respectable  and  pious  persons.  Among 
the  rest  came  a  wealthy  and  pious  lady,  highly 
accomplished,  and  strongly  disposed  towards  the* 
truth.  To  her  Mrs.  Prest  recited  the  creed ;  and 
when  she  came  to  the  words,  ''  he  ascended  into 
heaven,"  she  paused,  and  bade  her  visitor  to  seek 
his  body  in  heaven,  not  upon  earth ;  telling  her 
plainly  that  God  dwelleth  not  in  temples  made 
with  hands  ;  and  that  the  sacrament  was  intended 
for  nothing  else  but  to  be  a  remembrance  of  the 
sufferings  and  death  of  Christ ;  whereas,  as  the 
priests  used  it,  it  was  but  an  idol,  and  far  away 
from  any  remembrance  of  Christ's  body.  The 
lady,  on  returning  to  her  husband,  said  that  in  all 
her  life  she  never  heard  a  woman  of  such  sim- 
plicity and  plainness  of  appearance  ''  talk  so  godly, 
so  perfectly,  so  sincerely,  and  so  earnestly."  Ad- 
ding, "  Insomuch,  if  God  were  not  with  her,  she 
could  not  speak  such  things,  which  I  am  not  able 
to  answer,  though  I  can  read,  and  she  cannot.' 

At  last,  her  persecutors  having  exhausted  all 
their  powers  of  argument  to  shake  her  constancy, 
but  in  vain,  brought  her  before  the  court ;  and  rail- 
ing at  her  as  an  Anabaptist,  delivered  her  over  to 
the  civil  magistrate,  who  sent  her  from  one  prison 
to  another,  and  endeavored  to  persuade  her  to  re- 
cant;  telling  her,  among  other  things,  that  she 


MRS.    PREST.  295 

was  but  an  unlearned  woman,  and  could  not  un- 
derstand these  high  matters."  ''I  am  nothing 
more,"  was  her  answer,  "Yet  with  my  death  I  am 
content  to  be  a  witness  of  Christ's  death.  I  pray 
you  make  no  more  delay  with  me ;  my  heart  is 
fixed,  and  I  will  never  turn  to  their  superstitious 
doings."  The  bishop  said  that  she  was  led  by  the 
devil ;  and  in  every  possible  form  did  they  seek  to 
irritate  and  gain  an  advantage  over  her,  but  all 
was  entirely  in  vain. 

The  sentence  was  then  read  to  her — that  she 
should  be  burnt  in  the  flames  till  she  was  con- 
sumed. As  soon  as  she  heard  it,  she  lifted  up  her 
eyes  and  her  voice  towards  heaven,  and  said,  "  I 
thank  thee,  my  Lord  and  God.  This  day  have  I 
found  what  I  have  long  sought  for."  This  was 
followed  by  the  general  mocking  and  derision  of 
the  whole  court;  but  the  constant  martyr  stood 
unmoved  and  cheerful.  The  court  again  told  her, 
that  if  she  would  recant  and  turn  from  her  errors, 
her  life  should  be  spared.  Her  ready  and  decided 
reply  was,  "  l!^ay,  that  I  will  never  do ;  God  forbid 
that  I  should  lose  the  life  eternal  for  this  carnal 
and  short  life.  I  will  never  turn  from  my  Hea- 
venly husband  to  my  earthly  one ;  from  the  fel- 
lowship of  angels  to  mortal  children.  If  my  hus- 
band and  children  be  faithful,  then  I  am  still 
theirs.  God  is  my  father,  my  mother,  my  brother, 
my  sister,  my  friend  most  faithful." 

She  was  then  delivered  to  the  sheriff*;  and  in 
the  midst  of  an  immense  crowd  of  spectators  was 
led  to  the  place  of  execution,  outside  of  the  walls 


296  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

of  the  city  of  Exeter.  Here  again  the  Romish 
priests  assaulted  her,  but  she  refused  to  listen  to 
anything  they  wished  to  say,  and  begged  them  not 
to  disturb  her  any  more.  While  being  tied  to  the 
stake,  and  while  the  flames  were  all  around  her, 
she  displayed  a  holy  and  cheerful  courage.  Her 
last  prayer  was,  "  God  be  merciful  to  me,  a  sin- 
ner." Thus  did  she  die,  exhibiting  a  most  noble 
example  of  faith  and  constancy,  united  with  Chris- 
tian simplicity  and  humility.  Her  holy  Redeemer 
was  present  while  she  glorified  him  in  the  fire  of 
martyrdom,  and  conveyed  her  immortal  spirit  to 
his  own  throne,  eternally  to  participate  in  his  joy. 


MRS.    ELIZABETH    GAUNT. 


The  Rye-house  Plot,  as  it  was  called,  stands  as- 
sociated in  English  history  with  acts  of  atrocious 
cruelty,  perpetrated  under  color  of  the  administra- 
tion of  justice.  It  was  said  to  contemplate  the  as- 
sassination of  Charles  II. ;  but  of  this  there  is  no 
evidence.  To  adopt  the  words  of  the  Right  Hon- 
orable Charles  James  Fox : — "  That  which  is 
most  certain  in  this  affair  is,  that  the  persons  ac- 
cused committed  no  overt  act,  indicating  the 
imagining  of  the  king's  death,  even  according  to 
the  most  strained  construction  of  the  statute  of 
Edward  III. ;  much  less  was  any  such  act  legally 
proved  against  them.  And  the  conspiracy  to  levy 
war  was  not  treason,  except  by  a  recent  statute  of 
Charles  II.,  the  prosecutions  upon  which  were 
limited  to  a  certain  time,  which,  in  these  cases  had 
elapsed ;  so  that  it  is  impossible  not  to  assent  to 
the  opinion  .  of  those  who  have  ever  stigmatized 
the  condemnation  and  execution  of  Lord  William 
Russell  as  the  most  flagrant  violation  of  law  and 
justice.  The  proceedings  in  Sidney's  case  were 
still  more  grossly  unjust.  Thus  Russell  and  Sid- 
ney fell,  two  names  that  will,  it  is  hoped,  be  for 
ever  dear  to  every  patriotic  English  [and  American] 
heart.  When  their  memory  shall  cease  to  be  an 
object  of  respect  and  veneration,   it  requires  no 

(297) 


298  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

spirit  of  prophecy  to  foretell  that  liberty  will  be 
fast  approaching  to  its  final  consummation/' 

The  halo  of  glory  which  rests  on  the  names  of 
these  eminent  men  has  made  less  conspicuous 
some  who  are  still  worthy  of  grateful  remem- 
brance. These  were  times — like  some  that  pre- 
ceded them — in  which  were  persecutions  of  per- 
sons of  no  ordinary  worth. 

"  Who  lived  unknown, 


Till  persecution  dragged  them  into  fame, 
And  chased  them  up  to  heaven.'* 

Such  was  Elizabeth  Gaunt,  a  Baptist  in  humble 
life,  who  was  charged  with  harboring  a  man,  with 
his  family,  named  Burton,  suspected,  of  being  con- 
cerned in  the  Rye-house  plot.  That  he  was  a  vile 
scoundrel,  who  assumed,  for  his  own  wicked  pur- 
poses, the  cloak  of  ITonconformity,  there  is  every 
reason  to  believe ;  of  which  indeed  there  is  suf- 
ficient proof  in  his  becoming  king's  evidence 
against  the  woman  who  afforded  him  shelter,  and 
who  had  twice  saved  his  life. 

The  question  is,  had  she  incurred  any  guilt? 
She  might  be  innocent,  though  a  multitude  had 
violated  the  existing  laws.  Of  such  plain  facts, 
however,  her  judge, — the  infamous  Jefferies — had 
entirely  lost  sight,  and  he  engrossed  to  himself 
not  merely  the  power  of  a  tyrant-judge,  but  the 
right  of  a  succumbent  and  abject  jury.  He  saw 
that  there  was  no  proof  that  Elizabeth  Gaunt 
knew  anything  of  Burton's  being  engaged  in 
the  so-called  conspiracy,  or  was  even  aware   of 


MRS.    ELIZABETH    GAUNT.  299 

his  name  being  found  in  any  proclamation.  His 
only  proper  course,  therefore,  was  to  tell  this  to 
the  jury,  and  to  leave  them  to  pronounce  her  ac- 
quitted. But  what  was  a  proper  course  to  him, — 
a  man  of  furious  passions,  exasperated  by  habitual 
intemperance, — a  man  who  rioted  in  cruelty,  and 
had  a  fiendish  delight  in  pronouncing  the  sentence 
of  death?  Though  in  the  eye  of  the  law  that 
woman  was  innocent,  and  though  witnesses  were 
ready  to  attest  her  virtues,  he  forbade  them  to  be 
called,  directed  the  jury  to  find  her  guilty,  and 
then  consigned  her  to  the  agonies  of  the  stake. 
We  will,  however,  listen  to  the  statement  given 
of  the  whole  affair,  by  bishop  Burnet:  — 

"There  was  in  London  one  Gaunt,  a  woman 
that  was  an  Anabaptist,  who  spent  a  great  part  of 
her  life  in  acts  of  charity,  visiting  the  jails,  and 
looking  after  the  poor,  of  what  persuasion  soever 
they  were.  One  of  the  rebels  found  her  out,  and 
she  harbored  him  in  her  house,  and  was  looking 
for  an  occasion  of  sending  him  out  of  the  kingdom. 
He  went  about  in  the  night,  and  came  to  hear 
what  the  king  had  said,  [namely,  that  he  would 
sooner  pardon  the  rebels  than  those  who  harbored 
them.]  So  he,  by  an  unheard  of  baseness,  went 
and  delivered  himself  up,  and  accused  her  that  had 
harbored  him.  She  was  seized  on  and  tried. 
There  was  no  witness  to  prove  that  she  knew 
the  person  she  harbored  was  a  rebel,  except  he 
himself.  Her  maid  witnessed  only  that  he  was 
entertained  at  her  house ;  but  though  her  crime 
was  that  of  harboring  a  traitor,  and  was  proved 


300  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

only  by  this  infamous  witness,  yet  the  jndge 
charged  the  jury  to  bring  her  in  guilty,  pretending 
that  the  maid  was  a  second  witness,  though  she 
knew  nothing  of  that  which  was  the  criminal 
part. 
'^She  was  condemned  and  burnt,  as  the  law 
directs  in  the  case  of  women  convicted  of  treason. 
She  died  with  a  constancy  even  to  cheerfulness, 
that  struck  all  who  saw  it.  She  said.  Charity  was 
a  part  of  her  religion  as  well  as  faith ;  this  at  worst 
was  feeding  an  enemy.  So  she  hoped  she  had  re- 
ward with  him  for  whose  sake  she  did  this  service, 
how  unworthy  soever  the  person  was  who  made 
so  ill  a  return  for  it.  She  rejoiced  that  God  had 
honored  her  to  be  the  first  that  suffered  by  fire  in 
this  reign,  and  that  her  suffering  was  a  martyrdom 
for  that  religion  which  was  all  love.  Penn,  the 
Quaker,  told  me  that  he  saw  her  die.  She  laid 
the  straw  about  her  for  burning  her  speedily,  and 
behaved  herself  in  such  a  manner  that  all  the 
spectators  melted  in  tears.  *' 

She  was  executed,  according  to  her  sentence,  at 
Tyburn,  near  London,  October  23,  1685,  and  left 
a  paper  containing  an  account  of  the  whole  trans- 
action, which  she  delivered  into  the  hands  of  cap- 
tain Bichardson,  then  keeper  of  BTewgate  prison,  in 
which  she  had  been  confined.  It  cannot  be  unin- 
tere>sting  to  the  reader  : — 

"Not  knowing  whether  I  shall  be  suffered,  or 
able,  because  of  weakenesses  that  are  upon  me, 
through  my  hard  and  close  imprisonment,  to  speak 
at  the  place   of  execution,   I  have  written  these 


MRS.    ELIZABETH   GAUNT.  301 

few  lines  to  signify  that  I  am  reconciled  to  the 
ways  of  my  God  towards  me ;  though  it  is  in  ways 
I  looked  not  for,  and  by  terrible  things,  yet  in 
righteousness  ;  for  having  given  me  life,  he  ought 
to  have  the  disposing  of  it,  when  and  where  he 
pleases  to  call  for  it.  And  I  desire  to  offer  up  my 
all  to  him,  it  being  my  reasonable  service,  and  also 
the  first  terms  which  Christ  offers,  that  he  who 
will  be  his  disciple  must  forsake  all  and  follow 
him.  Therefore  let  none  think  hard,  or  be  dis- 
couraged at  what  hath  happened  unto  me ;  for  he 
hath  done  nothing  without  cause  in  all  that  he 
hath  done  unto  me ;  he  being  holy  in  all  his  ways, 
and  righteous  in  all  his  works,  and  it  is  but  my 
lot  in  common  with  poor  desolate  Zion  at  this 
day. 

'^  Neither  do  I  find  in  my  heart  the  least  regret 
at  anything  I  have  done  in  the  service  of  my  Lord 
and  Master,  Jesus  Christ,  in  securing  and  succor- 
ing any  of  his  poor  sufferers,  that  have  showed 
favor,  as  I  thought,  to  his  righteous  cause  ;  which 
cause,  though  it  be  now  fallen  and  trampled  on, 
yet  it  may  revive,  and  God  may  plead  it  at  another 
time  more  than  ever  he  hath  yet  done,  with  all  its 
opposers  and  malicious  haters.  And  therefore,  let 
all  that  love  and  fear  him  not  omit  the  least  duty 
that  comes  to  hand  or  lies  before  them,  knowing 
that  now  Christ  hath  need  of  them,  and  expects 
they  should  serve  him.  And  I  desire  to  bless  his 
holy  name  that  he  hath  made  me  useful  in  my 
generation,  to  the  comfort  and  relief  of  many 
desolate  ones  ;  that  the  blessing  of  many  who  were 
26 


302  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

ready  to  perish  hath  come  upon  me,  and  I  helped 
to  make  the  widow's  heart  leap  for  joy. 

"And  I  bless  his  holy  name  that  in  all  this, 
together  with  what  I  was  charged  with,  I  can  ap- 
prove my  heart  to  him,  that  I  have  done  his  will, 
though  it  may  cross  man's.  The  Scriptures  which 
satisfy  me  are  these :  '  Hide  the  outcasts  ;  bewray 
not  him  that  wandereth.  Let  mine  outcasts  dwell 
with  thee :  be  thou  a  covert  to  them  from  the  face 
of  the  spoiler.  Thou  shouldst  not  have  delivered 
up  those  of  his  that  did  remain  in  the  day  of  dis- 
tress.' Isa.  xvi.  3,  4  ;  Obad.  12,  13,  14.  But  men 
say  you  must  give  them  up,  or  die  for  it.  N'ow 
whom  to  obey,  judge  ye.  So  that  I  have  cause  to 
rejoice  and  be  exceeding  glad,  in  that  I  '  suffer  for 
righteousness'  sake,'  and  that  I  am  counted  worthy 
to  suffer  '  for  well  doing ;'  and  that  God  hath  ac- 
cepted any  service  from  me,  which  hath  been  done 
in  sincerity,  though  mixed  with  manifold  infirmi- 
ties, which  he  hath  been  pleased  for  Christ's  sake 
to  cover  and  forgive. 

"  And  now  as  concerning  my  crime,  as  it  is  now 
called ;  alas,  it  was  but  a  little  one,  and  such  as 
might  well  become  a  prince  to  forgive.  But  he 
that  shows  no  mercy  shall  find  none ;  and  I  may 
say  of  it  in  the  language  of  Jonathan,  '  I  did  but 
taste  a  little  honey,  and  lo,  I  must  die  for  it' — I  did 
but  relieve  an  unworthy,  poor,  distressed  family, 
and  lo,  I  must  die  for  it.  Well,  I  desire  in  the 
lamb-like  nature  of  the  gospel  to  forgive  those 
that  are  concerned ;  and  to  say,  '  Lord,  lay  it  not 
to  their  charge!'     But  I  fear  he  will  not;  nay,  I 


MRS.    ELIZABETH    GAUNT.  303 

believe,  when  he  comes  to  make  inquisition  for 
blood,  it  will  be  found  at  the  door  of  the  furious 
judge ;  who,  because  I  could  not  remember 
things,  through  my  dauntedness  [confusion]  at 
Burton's  wife  and  daughter's  witness,  and  my  ig- 
norance, took  advantage  of  it,  and  would  not  hear 
me  when  I  had  called  to  mind  that  which  I  am 
sure  would  have  invalidated  the  evidence.  And 
though  he  granted  something  of  the  same  kind  to 
another,  he  denied  it  to  me.  At  that  time  my 
blood  will  also  be  found  at  the  door  of  the  un- 
righteous jury,  who  found  me  guilty  on  the  single 
oath  of  an  outlawed  man  ;  for  there  was  none  but 
his  oath  about  the  money,  who  is  no  legal  witness, 
though  he  be  pardoned,  his  outlawry  not  being  re- 
versed, also  the  law  requiring  two  witnesses  in 
point  of  treason.  As  to  my  going  with  him  to 
the  place  mentioned,  namely,  the  Hope,  it  was  by 
his  own  word  before  he  could  be  outlawed,  for  it 
was  about  two  months  after  his  absconding.  So 
that  though  he  was  in  a  proclamation,  yet  not  for 
high  treason,  as  I  am  informed ;  so  that  I  am 
clearly  murdered.  And  also  bloody  Mr.  Atter- 
bury,  who  hath  so  insatiably  hunted  after  my  life, 
though  it  is  no  profit  to  him,  yet  through  the  ill 
will  he  bears  me,  left  no  stone  unturned,  as  I  have 
ground  to  believe,  till  he  brought  it  to  this,  and 
showed  favor  to  Burton,  who  ought  to  have  died  for 
his  own  fault,  and  not  to  have  bought  his  own  life 
with  mine.  Captain  Richardson,  who  is  cruel  and 
83vere  to  all  under  my  circumsctances,  did,  at  that 
time,  without  any  mercy  or  pity,  hasten  my  sen- 


804  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

tence,  and  held  up  my  hand  that  it  might  be 
given.  All  which,  together  with  the  great  one 
of  all  J  [James  11.,  who  had  just  come  to  the 
throne,  carrying  on  his  brother's  proceedings,] 
by  whose  power  all  these  and  multitudes  more 
of  cruelties  are  done,  I  do  heartily  and  freely 
forgive  as  against  me ;  but  as  it  is  done  in  an 
implacable  mind  against  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
and  his  righteous  cause  and  followers,  I  leave  it 
to  Him  who  is  the  avenger  of  all  such  wrong, 
and  'who  will  tread  upon  princes  as  upon  mor- 
tar, and  be  terrible  to  the  kings  of  the  earth.' 

"  Know  this  also,  that  though  you  are  seemingly 
fixed,  and  because  of  the  power  in  your  hands  are 
weighing  out  your  violence,  and  dealing  with  a 
spiteful  mind,  because  of  the  old  and  new  hatred, 
by  impoverishing  and  every  way  distressing  those 
you  have  got  under  you ;  yet  unless  you  can  secure 
Jesus  Christ,  and  also  his  holy  angels,  you  shall 
never  do  your  business,  nor  shall  your  hand  ac- 
complish your  enterprize.  He  will  be  upon  you 
ere  you  are  aware ;  and  therefore  that  you  would 
be  wise,  instructed,  and  learn,  is  the  desire  of  her 
that  finds  no  mercy  from  you ! 

''Elizabeth  Gaunt. 

"  P.  S.  Such  as  it  is,  you  have  from  the  hand  of 
her  who  hath  done  as  she  could,  and  is  sorry  that 
she  can  do  no  better ;  hopes  you  will  pity,  and 
consider,  and  cover  weaknesses  and  shortness,  and 
anything  that  is  wanting;  and  begs  that  none 
may  be  weakened  or  stumble  by  my  lowness  of 
spirit ;  for  God's  design  is  to  humble  and  abase. 


MRS.    ELIZABETH    GAUNT.  805 

that  he  alone  may  be  exalted  in  that  day.  And  I 
hope  he  may  appear  in  a  needful  time  and  hour, 
and  it  may  be  he  will  reserve  the  best  wine  till  the 
last,  as  he  hath  done  for  some  before  me.  N^one 
goeth  a  warfare  at  his  own  charges,  and  the  Spirit 
blows  only  where  and  when  it  listeth ;  and  it 
becomes  me  who  have  so  often  grieved  it  and 
quenched  it,  to  wait  for  and  upon  his  motions, 
and  not  to  murmur;  but  I  may  mourn,  because 
through  the  want  of  it  I  honor  not  my  God  nor 
his  blessed  cause,  which  I  have  so  long  loved  and 
delighted  to  serve ;  and  repent  of  nothing  but  that 
I  have  served  it  and  him  no  better." 

In  an  anonymous  work,  published  at  the  time, 
entitled  "  A  Display  of  Tyranny^'"  there  are  some 
remarks  upon  the  trial  of  this  truly  worthy  wo- 
man, which  are  highly  creditable  to  her  character. 
"Were  my  pen,"  says  the  author,  "  qualified  to  re- 
present the  due  character  of  this  excellent  woman, 
it  would  be  readily  granted  that  she  stood  most  de- 
servedly entitled  to  an  eternal  monument  of  honor 
in  the  hearts  of  all  sincere  lovers  of  the  reformed 
religion.  All  true  Christians,  though  in  some 
things  differing  in  persuasion  from  her,  found  in 
her  a  universal  charity  and  sincere  friendship,  as  ' 
is  well  known  to  many  here,  and  also  to  a  multi- 
tude of  the  Scotch  nation,  ministers  and  others, 
who  for  conscience  sake'  were  thrust  into  exile 
from  prelatic  rage.  These  found  in  her  a  most 
refreshing  refuge.  She  dedicated  herself  with  un- 
wearied industry  to  provide  for  their  supply  and 
support,  and  therein  I  do  incline  to  think  she  out- 
26* 


S06  BAPTIST    MARTYRS. 

stripped  every  individual,  if  not  the  whole  body  jf 
Protestants  in  this  city.  Hereby  she  became  ex- 
posed to  the  implacable  fury  of  the  papists,  and 
those  blind  tools  who  co-operated  to  promote  their 
accursed  designs  ;  and  so  there  appeared  little  dif- 
ficulty to  procure  a  jury,  as  there  were  well-pre- 
pared judges,  to  make  her  a  sacrifice  as  a  traitor 
to  "  holy  church." 


CONCLUSION. 


In  closing  a  volume,  the  interest  of  wHeli  has, 
to  its  writer,  increased  with  the  increase  of  his 
labor  in  producing  it,  it  cannot  be  improper  to 
quote  the  language  of  the  eloquent  Robert  Hall. 
Thus  does  he  write : — 

"  The  example  of  these  holy  persons  should  be 
a  reproof  to  the  lukewarmness  of  many  professing 
Christians.  Can  we  suppose  that  Christianity 
was,  in  primitive  times,  in  the  same  low  state  as 
at  present  ?  Were  these  martyrs  to  return  again 
and  see  the  general  state  of  religion, — the  practice 
of  some  in  attending  the  theatre,  where  the  name 
of  God  and  the  sanctity  of  religion  are  sported 
with — were  they  to  see  the  rapacity  of  the  rich,  or 
the  venom  of  party  spirit  which  prevails,  they 
would  inquire,  '  Where  are  the  traces  of  martyr- 
dom ?  Are  these  the  successors  of  those  who  be- 
lieved the  world  must  be  renounced,  and  that  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  must  be  taken  with  violence  ? 
You  reason  upon  the  lawfulness  of  amusements 
until  you  retain  everything  but  your  religion ;  the^ 
astonished  the  world  by  their  sufferings,  you  by 
the  portentous  magnitude  of  your  vices;  the^ 
sought  the  favor  of  Divine  Providence,  and  took 
nothing  by  violence  but  the  kingdom  of  heaven ; 
you  let  go  immortality  to  secure  wealth,  and  leave 
large  legacies  to  your  children  or  friends,  at  the 

(307) 


308  BAPTIST   MARTYRS. 

expense  of  lifting  up  your  eyes  in  torment  in  a 
future  world/ 

"  Would  not  these  be  the  sentiments  of  primi- 
tive Christians?  What  remains,  then,  but  that 
we  should  examine  our  steps  ?  Though  we  do  not 
reach  so  high  as  they  did,  we  may  reach  even 
higher.  Martyrdom  may  be  considered  as  the  ex- 
pression of  those  principles,  which  are,  in  their 
spirit,  obligatory  and  common  to  all  Christians. 
If  we  are  under  the  influence  of  the  world,  that 
spirit  will  lead  us  to  renounce  Christianity,  if  it 
be  not  done  already;  and  if  we  have  not  re- 
nounced the  love  of  the  world,  it  is  evident  that 
our  feet  will  never  stand  in  that  blessed  place 
where  they  sing  the  song  of  Moses  and  the 
Lamb. 

"  Let  us  not  be  slothful,  but  followers  of  them, 
who,  through  faith  and  patience,  are  now  inherit- 
ing the  promises.  Let  us  kindle  our  dying  lamps 
at  these  heavenly  fires.  Jesus  Christ,  the  great 
proto-martyr,  says,  ^If  any  one  will  be  my  dis- 
ciple, let  him  come  after  me.'  As  we  expect 
eternal  happiness,  let  us  seek  it  in  this  way,  for 
He  has  led  the  path." 

Let  us  close  our  volume  by  borrowing  from  an 
old  writer  a 

"CLUSTER  OF  SIMILES. 

**  God's  children  are  like  Stars,  that  look  most  bright 
When  foes  pursue  them  through  the  darkest  night; 
Like  Torches  beat,  they  more  resplendent  shine ; 
Like  Grapes  when  pressed,  they  yield  luxui-iant  wine ; 


CONCLUSION.  809 

Like  Spices  pounded,  are  to  smell  most  sweet ; 
Like  Trees  when  shook,  that  wave  but  not  retreat ; 
Like  Vines,  that  for  the  bleeding  better  grow  ; 
Like  Gold,  that  burning  makes  the  brighter  show ; 
Like  Glow-worms,  that  shine  best  in  dark  attire ; 
Like  Cedar-leaves,  whose  odors  gain  by  fire ; 
Like  the  Palm-tree,  whose  humors  force  removes ; 
Like  Camomile,  which  treading  on  improves; 
Like  everything  that  can  withstand  the  test. 
Are  those  God  loves,  and  who  love  God  the  best.*' 


THE  END. 


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